Naruto: Path of the Samurai
by xNamikazeKyuubix
Summary: What if Naruto made a different choice after the events of VotE? What if an injured Naruto was discovered by a travelling Mifune? With a new path laid out before him, will he forge his own way to victory? Samurai!Naruto. Naruto/Harem
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto... I think we've established that by now...**

**Hey ho its xNamikazeKyuubix back (finally) with another brand new (not again) story! I PROMISE that I am working on the chapters for the other fanfics but they are really slow going with all the school work and my freelance business at the moment.**

**This idea just kind of popped into my head out of nowhere when I was on my way to school one fine day. Well I guess this idea could be counted as 'original' since there are hardly any good fanfics with this theme of Naruto, hardly I never said there weren't any! If there are any, I have yet to find them... or it's a pairing I detest.**

**Well enough blabbering from me, time to get this show on the freaking road!**

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Chapter 1: A New Path

_What have I been doing with my life...? _

_Was everything I accomplished up to this point meaningless?_

_For all my boasting and bravado...I couldn't even save one friend..._

These were the thoughts swimming around in a certain young blond-haired shinobi as he lay injured upon the cold, hard ground as rain pelted down around him. The roar of the waterfall in the background thundered through his brain as he reflected upon his actions up to that point in time.

'For all my training... Sasuke still defeated me in the end.' He though bitterly to himself with teeth clenched as he felt the burning youki of the Kyuubi work upon the wound in his chest.

'Brother... brother my ass... no brother would drive a lightning covered fist through your chest just so he could prove himself...' Naruto reached out and grasped the slashed headband resting beside him.

"Ah fuck this hurts..." He hissed in pain as he rolled over and pushed himself back up, the slashed headband of his former teammate grasped tightly in his hand.

He turned his piercing cerulean blue gaze onto the piece of metal and cloth in his hand, the symbol of Konohagakure no Sato (Hidden Leaf Village) clearly gouged through with a kunai. The rain drizzled down around him, serving to only increase the depressing atmosphere at the destroyed landscape of the Valley of the End.

"Well Uchiha Sasuke... this officially means we're no longer brothers." Naruto spat upon the metal before tossing the headband to the side as the fist-sized wound in his chest finally sealed up. "...thanks for the quick repair Kyuubi."

'**Think of it as a welcome gift for finally coming to your senses regarding the Uchiha brat...'** The Kyuubi's voice drifted through his mind causing his eyes to widen slightly.

"You can talk to me?" Naruto asked dumbfounded.

'**Yeah obviously I can speak to you, isn't that what I just fucking did you meatbag.' **Kyuubi scoffed at the ridiculous question.

Naruto could feel a slight twitch developing in his eyebrow at the tone, "Then why didn't you say anything up to now?"

'**...I find it below something of my status to converse with a lowly meatbag like you.' **Kyuubi replied smugly. **'And just think of your response meatbag, otherwise other meatbags will think you were retarded... not saying that you aren't retarded already."**

'...I hate you.' Naruto groaned as he painfully trudged back into the forest.

'**The feeling is mutual meatbag...' **

Despite Kyuubi healing the life-threatening wound, the major blood-loss soon took its toll as his vision started to swim. Naruto stumbled forward a little as darkness encroached on his vision; he instinctively reached out to grasp at something to keep his balance.

'Shit...' His hand brushed against the harsh bark of a nearby tree trunk and automatically braced his shoulder against it.

'**Nothing I can do about it... time to say nighty-night meatbag!'**

'Fuck you...' Naruto managed to get off before he completely blacked out and collapsed forward onto the forest floor.

The unconscious blonde Genin was unaware of the crunching sound that steadily approached him, the sound of someone or something making its way through the forest towards his prone form. A pause in the sound was followed by a startled gasp and a gruff voice.

"Well... that's not what I was expecting to see on my annual visit to the Fire Daimyo's palace..."

Undetermined number of hours later

A groan echoed throughout a small simple room as cerulean blue eyes flickered open and close, trying to blink the sleep from them albeit unsuccessfully. Uzumaki Naruto awoke to find himself staring at an unfamiliar ceiling; it was neither that of his home or the hospital.

Feeling something damp on his forehead where his headband should be, he reached up a hand to find a damp cloth placed there. For a brief moment confusion stretched across his face before the events of the past day suddenly hit him like a giant toad summoned by his perverted teacher.

'Okay calm down... looks like somebody stumbled across my unconscious body and carried me back to their home... or a rented room at least.' Naruto thought as he tossed the cloth onto a nearby table and sat up, pleasantly noting that most of the pain from his wounds had gone away.

Taking a look down at himself, he noticed that his torn, tattered and bloodied orange jumpsuit had been replaced by a simple yet elegant-looking crimson yukata. His eyes widened slightly at feeling the smooth texture of the cloth used, it was definitely worth more than everything he owned combined.

'Whoever found me must be pretty wealthy to be able to afford clothing of this standard...' He thought before taking in his surroundings.

It was basically what most people expected to find in most rented rooms, a bathroom, a single bed, a wardrobe, two windows and a bedside table with a lamp. The blonde shinobi got to his feet and walked over to the window to take a peak outside, it overlooked a busy market street filled with stores and bustling with people.

'Definitely not Konoha then... I recognised all of the streets and alleyways ever since I started pulling pranks and had to escape detection or outrun the ANBU.' Naruto sighed as he pressed his forehead against the glass.

"Such a tired sigh for someone so young..." A rather rough and elderly voice sounded from behind him causing him to immediately twirl around in a simple taijutsu stance.

Focused blue eyes instantly scanned the individual before him; the initial look of an elderly man did not get him to loosen his stance. He had long grey hair, which almost reaches down to his waist, with bandages wrapped around his head. Black eyes with distinct wrinkles underneath them, he also has a grey goatee and moustache. The man too wore an elegant but simple dark purple yukata with a grey haori over it but what caught his attention was the katana strapped to his waist.

The sword appeared to be fairly long and thin judging from the sheath had a rectangular hand-guard and a long hilt wrapped in bandages. While anyone could have bought a katana and strode around with it attached to their waist, they could not exude the aura of experience and sheer deadliness that the elderly man seemed to emit.

"Who are you?" Naruto finally asked after his analysis was done.

"My name... is Mifune. How about you, Genin hailing from Konohagakure no Sato, what is your name?" Mifune asked after replying.

"Naruto... Uzumaki Naruto."

Mifune's eyes widened by a slight margin upon hearing that name, "Uzumaki... now that is a name I have not heard in a long, long time... they were said to have been completely wiped out during the Second Great Shinobi War."

"I... I had a family?" Naruto stuttered out in surprise, his cerulean eyes wide.

"You didn't know?" Mifune raised a delicate eyebrow as if he did not believe it. "You, an Uzumaki raised in Konohagakure no Sato, has not heard of the great Uzumaki clan that you hailed from? A clan that was just as important and powerful as the Senju?"

"No... They never covered anything about them in the academy." Naruto answered truthfully with a blank expression whilst his mind was working at a furious pace.

'The Uzumaki clan was as famous as the Senju? How come something as important as that was never taught by Iruka-sensei? Why did everyone act as if Uzumaki was just a normal name if it really is as big as this Mifune guy mentioned...?'

'**It seems the truth will finally be revealed...'** Kyuubi suddenly injected in a strangely neutral tone.

'Kyuubi what do you mean by that...?'

'**It matters not as the elderly meatbag is going to explain it to you sooner or later...' **The demonic entity went completely silent after that, as if content to just watch and see how everything would unfold.

"That doesn't make sense... the Uzumaki clan were distant relatives of the Senju clan and played just as big a role in Konoha's history as the Senju and Uchiha clans. The shinobi of Konoha integrated Uzushiogakure's symbol onto their uniforms and flak jackets as well as on the shoulders of their uniforms as a sign of friendship and goodwill between the two villages, and continue to do so to this day, in memory of their friendship even years after Uzushiogakure's destruction." Mifune explained as he shook his head.

"I see... then why was I treated as a clan-less orphan left to starve and survive on my own from the age of six?" Naruto kept his voice neutral as he asked.

"You were left on your own at the age of six?" Mifune's voice rose slightly in shock, his mind trying to work around the fact that a child had been abandoned to fend for himself at such a young age.

"Yes, I was kicked out of the orphanage when my sixth birthday came around. Drunken shinobi and civilians then formed a mob and chased me through the streets at night, hurling insults, glares and weapons at my back as I ran..." Naruto took a deep breath to calm himself as well as allow the information to soak in. "Eventually they cornered me at a dead end and proceeded to beat the ever living shit out of me, often using a kunai or two. The ANBU arrived a minute later and spirited the aggressors away..."

"Kami above..." Mifune whispered in disgust.

"I lay there injured and bloodied for another full minute before another ANBU showed up to take me to the hospital, where I was refused treatment by the staff on account of being a 'no-good-demon-brat'. It was only when the Sandaime Hokage arrived would I actually be admitted to a ward, where I was given the bare minimal treatment for my wounds." Naruto looked the older man in the eyes as he prepared to say his next sentence. "And if you hadn't guessed by now... the reason for my treatment is because I am the Jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi no Yoko."

"I guessed as much... Jinchuuriki across the Elemental Nations seemed to get the same kind of treatment." Mifune sighed before asking another question. "So Naruto-san, how did you end up where you were when I found you?"

"Just Naruto is fine Mifune-san... and it was due to someone I used to consider a brother..." Naruto proceeded to relate his entire tale of drama and happenings to the aged man, feeling an odd sense of relief after pouring everything out onto someone else.

"If there is something we samurai hate more than anything else, it is betrayal... betrayal of trust, of loyalty, of friendship. People that perform such deeds do not deserve to continue living in our eyes..." Mifune spat in disgust after hearing the tale.

"You're a samurai?" Naruto asked in surprise.

"Indeed Naruto... I am Mifune, taishō (general) of Tetsu no Kuni (Land of Iron) and leader of the samurais." Mifune introduced himself fully this time.

"Does that mean you're like their Kage or something?"

"From a shinobi point of view, yes I am something akin to a Kage at least in political power if not raw unbridled power." Mifune chuckled slightly.

"Mifune-sama, please forgive me for my ignorance." Naruto bowed his head as he kneeled down on one knee, not wanting to get on the bad side of the leader of a country. 'Especially not one that just bothered to save my life...'

"That's not necessary Naruto. We samurai tend to stay out of shinobi business so it isn't much of a surprise that the younger ninjas don't know who I am. Also you could say that shinobi and samurai have a long standing silent rivalry going on, probably due to our conflicting ideals and thoughts." Mifune said as he helped the young blonde-haired Jinchuuriki back to his feet.

"I remember some things from history class... shinobi go about in any way to accomplish their task, be it lying, stealing, assassination or other deceitful and dishonorable means. Samurai are bound by a code of honor that they are not allowed to break or risk getting severe penalties..." Naruto narrowed his eyes as he recited the text from his memory.

"Hahaha that's rather old material you got there! Where did your teacher pull that out from, the ancient archives? Living among several large armies composing of lying, cheating backstabbers will definitely force us to change our ways..." The elderly man chuckled in amusement as he shook his head.

"So that means you abolished the code of honor?" Naruto asked in curiosity.

"Yes and no. We removed most of it but there are still strict rules and regulations that we adhere to, such as rape, murder, plundering and anything along those lines are not permitted and will be dealt with accordingly." Mifune replied causing Naruto to stare at him in thought for a moment. "Is something on your mind Naruto?"

"Hai Mifune-sama..." Naruto dropped to one knee and bowed his head. "Please train me in the arts of the Samurai..."

Mifune felt his eyes widen at the request, "What prompted such a request? We have only just met and you would entrust your life to me?"

"I see no choice other than to trust you, besides the fact that you could have just left me for dead when you found me... Plus that aura of strength and confidence that you carry around you, it is definitely not just for show." Naruto replied without hesitation.

"What about your shinobi career? Your village, friends and family?" Mifune asked.

"My shinobi career is non-existent with the village holding me back. The majority of the village population hates me for being the Jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi, I hardly am close to any of my friends and what family? I am an orphan..." Naruto answered whilst meeting the older man's gaze with a steely expression.

"Well then..." Mifune stroked his beard as he considered his options before smirking slightly. "I see no reason not to accept your request... besides I always wanted an apprentice of my own. Not to mention that apprentice being the first ever Jinchuuriki samurai..."

"Arigatou Mifune-sama, this means a lot to me!" Naruto sprang to his feet with a genuine smile and bowed respectfully.

"Now that we're master and apprentice, you have to address me as Mifune-sensei." The experienced samurai leader informed the blonde, who nodded in understanding.

"Hai Mifune-sensei, so are we going back to Tetsu no Kuni to begin my training?" Naruto asked, already excited at the prospect of his new training.

"Eventually Naruto but for now we're going to be traversing the Elemental Nations, so as to get you familiarized with the different countries and their people." Mifune replied.

Naruto scrunched up his eyes at the answer, "Ne... what does running around the countries help with my training?"

"Well being a good warrior doesn't necessarily consist of being the best fighter, sometimes words can be just as potent a weapon. Not all battles can be solved using force my apprentice... sometimes a little more 'diplomacy' is required." Mifune turned around and opened the door of the room before looking over his shoulder. "Let's go, time to begin your training."

Naruto shoved all his thoughts to the back of his mind for the moment, choosing to focus on whatever his master wanted of him.

In Konohagakure no Sato

"Kakashi... could you repeat that again?" Tsunade asked with a sickly sweet tone causing the masked Jounin to gulp slightly as cold sweat trickled down the back of his head.

"Um... both Naruto and Sasuke... seemed to have... left the village?" Kakashi answered nervously.

"And what would make you come to that conclusion, about Naruto not the Uchiha brat..." Tsunade inquired as civilly as she could.

"Well I found Sasuke's scratched out headband by the Valley of the End... and Naruto's headband by the edge of the forest..." The silver-haired Jounin replied, his usual Icha-Icha book clutched in his hand but unopened.

"And Naruto's headband... was it scratched out like the Uchihas?"

"No Hokage-sama..."

"Well Kakashi... could it have been possible that the Uchiha decided that Naruto would make a good offering to Orochimaru? Or that an enemy shinobi could have kidnapped him after recognizing the whisker marks as the sign of a Jinchuuriki?" Tsunade growled with an eyebrow twitching violently.

"That... is highly possible..." Kakashi rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.

"And you didn't think of this before because...?" The busty blonde Hokage cracked her knuckles.

"Ah well you see... I was about to check when uh... a black cat walked under a ladder beside me?" He offered with a weak smile.

"Kakashi... YOU LAZY PERVERTED BASTARD CYCLOPS!" Tsunade roared as she cocked her chakra-loaded fist back.

Kakashi gulped and held his little orange book up in front of his face like a shield, "Protect me porn!"

Unfortunately that did little to help him as the super-powered punch knocked him sky-high out of the Hokage tower and sent him sailing across the village, leaving an angered Tsunade to calm herself down.

"Tsunade-sama... what do we do now? About Naruto-kun I mean..." Shizune asked nervously.

"Get together the best tracker team possible, I want them to head to Naruto's last known position and see if they can track him down. By sight, smell, sound or chakra I don't give a damn as long as there are results." Tsunade told her black-haired apprentice who could only nod meekly before scurrying off to fulfill her orders.

The blonde Kage massaged her temples before speaking to a seemingly empty room, "What do you want Jiraiya? And I swear that if it is anything dumb then I will send you flying like I did with Kakashi..."

"Of course Tsunade..." Jiraiya gulped nervously as he dropped his camouflage technique before his voice turned serious as he locked eyes with her. "I heard everything that Kakashi reported... and I will be going on my own search for him using the Toads since they have excellent chakra sensors. However if I do find him, I would like your permission to train him away from the village for three years."

"Three years? Why would you want him out of the village for so long?" Tsunade asked with a raised eyebrow.

"I would be training him in the shinobi arts as well as teaching him how to control and utilize the Kyuubi's chakra... also Akatsuki has started to move." Jiraiya said with a tone devoid of his usual playfulness.

"Are you sure?"

"Positive... my spies have confirmed with me that they have finally emerged from hiding and their objective is to capture all of the Bijū (Tailed Beasts). The purpose of which is something that I do not know... So I plan on keeping Naruto on the move so Akatsuki would have a tougher time targeting him as well as training him to fight S-class enemies. Plus it will allow me to travel and acquire more information on this elusive S-class missing-nin organisation and its members." Jiraiya explained in detail.

"...I consent to your request. However that is on the basis that you manage to find him first..." Tsunade sighed before pulling open her bottom drawer and channelling some of her chakra into a hidden storage seal, revealing a bottle of sake.

"So that's where you hide your alcohol..." Jiraiya muttered with a shake of his head.

"You want any?" She held up the glass bottle only to receive a negative.

"Enjoy yourself... I've got a missing blonde Genin to track down!" The white-haired Sannin smirked before leaping out the window of her office.

Tsunade just sighed again before uncorking the bottle and chugging down the contents, relishing in the burn that the alcohol caused in her throat. Just as she took another gulp of alcohol, the door to her office swung open.

"Tsunade-sama! Are you drinking on the job again!" Shizune shouted at her mentor causing said woman to choke on the drink and spray it out of her mouth whilst hiding the bottle behind her back.

"Umm... no?"

"Regardless... here is the team that I managed to assemble Tsunade-sama!" The black-haired petite assistant stepped out of the way, allowing three shinobi to enter the room.

The first person was a male with long, black hair and featureless white eyes that signified his belonging to the famed Hyuuga clan. He wore a very traditional, loose fitting white robe with the standard Konoha Jounin vest situated over it and a Konoha Hitai-ate (Forehead Protector) around his forehead.

The second person was a female with animalistic looks about her. She has long spiky brown hair, vertical slit-like pupils, elongated canine teeth and nails. She also has the clan fang markings of the Inuzuka on her cheeks as well as markings over her eyes and a dark shade of purple lipstick. She wears the standard outfit of a Konoha Jounin shinobi.

The third person was a male like all members of the Aburame clan, had his eyes obscured by dark glasses which feature a single tassel hanging down from one-side. He has very spiky short black hair and a moustache. He typically wears a high collared outfit, while carrying a gourd on his back similar to that of Sabaku no Gaara.

"Hyuuga Hiashi, Inuzuka Tsume and Aburame Shibi... I didn't expect three clan heads to step up to this task." Tsunade said with disbelief in her voice.

"It's good to get off our behinds and make sure our skills haven't rusted after all this time Hokage-sama." Tsume let out a bark of laughter after her sentence.

"It would be very unbecoming of myself as a clan head when my own nephew very nearly gave his own life to retrieve a member of our shinobi forces yet I sit behind a desk all day no?" Hiashi replied with a small smirk.

"..." Shibi stared on impassively from behind his shades.

"Glad to have you three aboard then! Now I take it that Shizune has informed you of your mission?" Tsunade asked, getting three nods in response. "Good, now head out while the trail is still relatively fresh!"

"Hai Hokage-sama!" The three experienced Jounin saluted before vanishing in their respective Shunshin no Jutsu (Body Flicker technique).

With Mifune and Naruto

The master and apprentice had left the small town and were walking alongside a merchant caravan on its way to Takigakure no Sato (Hidden Waterfall Village), which was the first stop on the samurai's list.

"Tell me Naruto, what do you know about Takigakure no Sato?" Mifune asked as they chatted.

"Well there was this one time that my former team was assigned a mission to protect the current leader of Takigakure, Shibuki. My Jounin leader at that time had to leave due to an emergency Jounin meeting, leaving us to fulfil a side mission of cleaning up the area. However Shibuki's former teacher betrayed the village by allying up with Amegakure (Hidden Rain) shinobi to steal the famed Hero Water of the village." Naruto paused for a moment as his eyes dulled slightly. "It was a tough fight but I managed to defeat him with the help of Kyuubi and Sasuke..."

"I see..." Mifune whispered as he stroked his beard. 'He still misses his ex-teammate despite what has happened and his own resolve... I guess that is to be expected after all.'

"That is about my only experience with Takigakure Mifune-sensei." Naruto's voice cut him out from his thoughts.

"Hmm... did you know that Takigakure has its own Jinchuuriki?" Mifune glanced sideways to observe his apprentice's reaction.

Naruto stumbled slightly when he heard that before recovering and looking up at the elderly samurai with wide eyes, "Taki has a Jinchuuriki like me?"

"Yes... well not exactly like you. When your Shodaime Hokage, Senju Hashimara, gave away the Bijū in a gesture of goodwill to the other villages. Takigakure received the Nanabi no Kabutomushi (Seven-tailed Rhinoceros Beetle) and thus gained its very own Jinchuuriki by sealing it into infants to train to wield the powerful chakra entity." Mifune explained as he chuckled at the blonde's rapt attention. "Last I heard it was sealed into an infant girl..."

"A girl is the Jinchuuriki of the Nanabi... I wonder if she has gone through the same lifestyle as me." Naruto whispered the last part to himself but his master still managed to pick it up.

"Don't worry about that first, we'll have the chance to meet her once we get there... For now I want you to do something for me..." The elderly man held out his hand. "Could you pass me one of your kunai?"

"Sure..." Naruto replied in confusion as he pulled out a kunai from its slot and handed it over grip first.

"Now Naruto-totei (apprentice), this is one of the most basic things regarding chakra that samurai learn. It's how to channel your chakra into your weapon, thus increasing its cutting power and resilience." Mifune explained as he held up the kunai and channelled his chakra into it.

Naruto watched in interest as the kunai soon had a dull blue glow around it which steadily grew brighter, the glow eventually stabilised into a blue shroud around the entire weapon. He followed his sensei as he walked over to a random tree and slashed at it with a chakra-less kunai first, then followed by a chakra-enhanced kunai.

"As you can see by the demonstration, the chakra-enhanced kunai left a much deeper gash on the tree trunk in comparison to a normal kunai. This is one of the most basic techniques of the samurai, now I want you to try it for yourself..." Mifune told the blonde as he returned the kunai and they resumed walking.

"I will do my best Mifune-sensei!" Naruto grinned as he stared at the plain kunai in his grip.

The original him would have just blasted chakra into it straight and hope for the best but he had changed already, so he tried applying the tree walking principle to this.

'Okay... not too much and not too little. Have to find the correct balance...' Naruto chanted in his mind as he channelled his chakra into the weapon but even after a minute nothing happened.

The blonde blinked as he switched hands and tried again but yet again there were no changes, he took a deep breath and tried again and again and kept switching hands. After the twentieth time he could feel his eyebrow twitching already, all he had managed to do was stick the kunai to his hand like how he stuck to surfaces using the tree-walking exercise.

Naruto finally gave up with a sigh of defeat before looking up at his mentor to see a knowing smirk on his face, "Mifune-sensei... any tips to help me along?"

"Well Naruto-totei... what you're doing is actually just channelling chakra into your hand thus resulting in the sticking effect. However what you're supposed to be doing is to channel your chakra into your weapon and not your hand... enough of a hint for you?" Mifune asked with an amused tone.

"Channel into the weapon huh..." Naruto looked down at the kunai in his hand and tried pushing his chakra into the weapon, still no result other than attaching it to his palm again.

"Still no luck huh... pay attention to what I said carefully. Channel your chakra into your weapon... channel it into your weapon."

"That's what I'm trying to do!" Naruto shouted in frustration as he attempted and failed once again.

'**Stupid meatbag, do you still not realise what the old meatbag is talking about?' **Kyuubi's voice drifted through his mind suddenly.

'No fuzzy, I do not understand...'

'**... You really are a dumb bag of meat aren't you?' **

'Shut up fuzzy...'

'**Well then I guess I'll keep the answer to myself then...' **Kyuubi could practically feel his container's eyes widening after that statement.

'Hey wait a minute you know the answer? Quick hurry up and tell me!'

'**...say the magic word~' **

'...please tell me the answer?'

'**Address me as Kyuubi-sama and not fuzzy.'**

'Please tell me the answer Kyuubi-sama...' Naruto growled slightly as he said it.

'**...wonderful, amazing and beautiful Kyuubi-sama.'**

'Don't push it fox...'

'**Well I guess you don't want to know the answer then...' **Kyuubi's voice was taunting causing his eyebrow to twitch slightly as he sighed.

'Please tell me the answer oh wonderful, amazing and beautiful Kyuubi-sama!' Naruto repeated with a mocking reverent tone before his eye widened. 'Wait a freaking second... you're female?'

'**Oh so now you're a sexist meatbag? Are you telling me that females can't be strong huh? Why so surprised that the strongest Bijū in existence at the moment is female?' **Kyuubi went off into a rant inside his mind, resulting in a rather uncomfortable migraine for him.

'No I didn't mean it like that! I was surprised because we were told that all of you were just chakra constructs and had no gender...' Naruto thought back in reply as he rubbed his head gently.

Mifune cocked an eyebrow at his apprentice's weird behaviour, the boy seemed to be making strange facial expressions ranging from annoyance to shock and now he was massaging his brow. The most the elderly samurai could come up with was that his apprentice was currently communicating with his nine-tailed tenant.

'**Shows what you useless meatbags know... yes we Bijū all have genders, just like how we all have names and not just our titles.' **Kyuubi scoffed.

'Wait you have names as well... then what's your name?' Naruto asked in curiosity.

'**As if I would grace a pathetic meatbag like you with my name... I'm just glad that it's not something retarded like Naruto (Fishcake).'**

'For the last time, my name is Naruto (Maelstrom)!'

'**That's what I said...' **Kyuubi snickered to herself before clearing her throat. **'So do you want to know the answer or not?'**

'Of course I do...'

'**Well meatbag listen closely! Why do you think he said YOUR weapon and not THE weapon?'**

'...because it is my weapon?' Naruto hazarded a guess and swore he could hear the sound of Kyuubi ramming her head against the metal bars of her cage.

'**...no you blonde idiotic meatbag! He means that you have to view the weapon as an extension of yourself and not just another ninja tool! You have to treat the kunai like it's a part of your body so your chakra can flow into it easier!' **Kyuubi explained with an exasperated tone.

'Oh... can I ask you another question?'

'**...I'm almost afraid to ask what it is but go ahead.'**

'Why does your voice not sound feminine at all?'

'**I am a towering nine-tailed demonic fox with the power to crush mountains and summon tidal waves... having a soft and pleasant feminine voice does not fit the profile meatbag...'**

'Oh... thanks for the advice anyway...'

Kyuubi shook her snout as she felt her container sever the mental link, **'I can't believe I got sealed into this dumb meatbag... though he looks much better than that girly-boy of a father he had.'**

Mifune watched out of the corner of his eye as his apprentice took a deep breath and sighed before focusing on his kunai, there seemed to be a calmer and focused air about him. He felt his eyebrow rise slightly when he noticed a shimmering blue aura form around the kunai, though it did not last for long and disappeared a minute later.

"Had an enlightening conversation with your 'partner' I assume?" Mifune asked with a knowing smile.

"You could say that sensei... but I finally understand what you meant." Naruto replied with a grin as he formed an unstable blue glow around his kunai again.

"Very good Naruto... now practice and learn how to stabilize your chakra within your kunai. It should be instinctual and able to pull it off without putting so much effort and thought into it like you are currently doing, so keep practicing until we reach Takigakure no Sato." Mifune instructed with a strict tone.

Naruto saluted playfully before turning his attention back to his kunai and resuming their trek towards the village, both of them unknowing of the presence spying upon them.

"Leader-sama must know of this immediately! **Well then stop fucking wasting time here and let's go!"** A distorted dual-toned voice argued with itself, revealing that the owner of said voice was a strange plant-like man with a huge venus flytrap sprouting from his shoulders and encompassing his head.

"We haven't gotten anything to eat yet! **I'm hungry too you idiot, the faster we report this in then the faster we can feast..." **The plant-like man nodded absentmindedly before sinking back into the tree trunk it had emerged from, leaving no trace of his presence.

With the Konoha tracker team

"There's a blood trail leading back here from the Valley of the End... it looks like the kid fought it out with the Uchiha brat and lost but managed to survive. His scent stops here which means that he collapsed against this tree... yet there is no body." Tsume reported as she sniffed the air once again.

"My kikaichu inform me that there was another chakra presence here other than Naruto's... and it wasn't the Uchiha's..." Shibi told them in his usual monotone voice.

"Nothing within range of my Byakugan either... hold on I think I've got something..." Hiashi squinted before grinning. "Well looks like we have a trail... I managed to pick up a faint trail of Kyuubi's chakra that was probably at work healing the damage done to the Uzumaki kid's body."

"Fantastic! Lead the way!" Tsume shouted as the three shinobi took off again with Hiashi in the lead.

The trio eventually arrive at a simple town situated in the outskirts of Hi no Kuni (Land of Fire), Hiashi leads them towards an Inn in the middle of the town. The three shinobi getting strange looks from the citizens as they were a rather rare sight, especially in a small rural town like theirs.

Hiashi walked into the Inn only to blink in surprise when he spotted a man with a familiar mane of spiky white hair standing at the receptionist desk and flirting with the female stationed there.

"Jiraiya-sama?" The Hyuuga clan head called out, prompting the Sannin to turn around.

"Hyuuga Hiashi, Inuzuka Tsume and Aburame Shibi... certainly didn't expect to see three prominent clan heads out this far from Konoha. What are you all doing here anyway?" Jiraiya asked.

"Tsunade-sama sent us three out as a tracking squad to search for Uzumaki Naruto... though it seems like you're doing the same thing ya pervert." Tsume laughed when she saw the insulted look on the Toad Sennin.

"You hurt my feelings Tsume; I am not a pervert... but a super pervert!" Jiraiya shouted out as he held up a finger in the air causing the three clan head's to palm their face in embarrassment.

"Friendly banter aside Jiraiya-sama, it looks like you arrived at the same location that we have..." Shibi said as he pushed his shades up his nose.

"Yeah, apparently Naruto was here up until a few hours ago. The receptionist said that he had left with the same person that had brought him in, an elderly man with a bandaged head wearing expensive-looking clothing and a katana sheathed at his waist." Jiraiya told them before sighing. "Which hardly narrows down our list of suspects as anyone could have just used a Henge no Jutsu (Transformation technique) to fool a civilian... looks like we have to split up and ask around the town then."

"Alright, how about we meet back up outside this Inn around an hour later?" Hiashi asked and received three nods of understanding before they split up.

An hour later and the four Konohagakure shinobi met back up outside the Inn with various looks of disappointment evident on their faces, one look at each other and they could tell.

"So I take it that none of you managed to find any leads as to where the blonde brat had wandered off to or the identity of the person he was with?" Jiraiya asked with a small hint of hope.

However that hope was crushed when all three clan heads' shook their heads in response as Tsume ran a clawed hand through her rough spiky hair, "The closest thing to a lead I got was that a villager had seen them leave together with a merchant caravan earlier, but they have no idea as to where that caravan was headed..."

"Damn, that caravan could have crossed the boundaries of Hi no Kuni already... if that is the case then I am the only one able to pursue it due to my abilities as a spy-master. You three should head back and report to Tsunade, also as a precaution in case of the situation where the merchant caravan had decided to travel inland towards Konoha instead!" Jiraiya barked out orders getting three curt nods before they spun around and dashed off.

The Toad Sannin bit his thumb before running through several handseals and slammed his open palm onto the ground, causing a sealing matrix to spread out across the sandy floor.

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu (Summoning technique)!"

The smoke cleared to reveal a medium sized dark blue toad with a pair of daggers sheathed at its waist, "Yo Jiraiya, I presume you're ready to resume tracking down Naruto?"

"Hai Gamatate, what of the boy's connection to the summoning scroll?" Jiraiya asked as he hopped up on the toad's head and stuck there using his chakra.

"His connection is still there, meaning that he is still alive." Gamatate croaked in response.

"Then how come you guys haven't just reversed summoned him back to Mount Myōboku?"

"Definitely not from lack of trying I'll tell you that..." The toad blinked his large amphibious eyes as he hopped out of the small town. "However it seems like something or someone is blocking our attempts to reverse summon him, it's like there is some sort of foreign chakra interference..."

"It must be the work of the Kyuubi... for whatever reason it seems that the beast does not want Naruto back in our custody." Jiraiya rubbed his chin. "That's a scary thought... it means that the Kyuubi must have something planned for him. Which just makes it all the more urgent that we track him down faster!"

In an unknown location

"So you're telling me that the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki has chosen to abandon his village and train under Mifune, the samurai general of Tetsu no Kuni?" A distorted male voice echoed throughout the cave, the speaker was a holographic representation of the shadowy form of a man with spiky hair and pale purple eyes with a ripple like pattern.

"Hai leader-sama, the **blonde brat has indeed done so."** The plant-like man reported, his yellow dot-like eyes staring straight ahead unblinking.

"Well looks like things have just gotten a whole lot more interesting wouldn't you say Itachi?" A holograph of a large man holding an equally huge sword laughed.

"... Mifune is an experience and powerful samurai that stood up to Salamander Hanzo and earned his respect. Something that only the three Sannin had done before; it is not wise to underestimate his skills." The Uchiha prodigy replied with his eyes closed.

"Oh I'm just psyched up to have a sword fight with a real samurai! See how they fare against Hoshigaki Kisame, one of the Kiri no Shinobigatana Shichinin Shū (Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist)!" The revealed Kisame declared with a gleeful tone.

"Just remember that we need the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki back in one piece Kisame, or it will be your head." The ripple-patterned eyes gazed in the shark man's direction, slightly creeping him out.

"Got it leader-sama, I'll make sure the brat survives... not saying that he wouldn't be missing a few parts though gahaha!" Kisame laughed again.

"Very well... Deidara and Sasori, you two are to get ready to head to Takigakure no Sato so you can capture the Jinchuuriki of the Nanabi no Kabutomushi. Don't expect much in way of shinobi resistance as the village seems to despise her existence and would appear to be rather glad to be rid of her presence..." The shadowy form of the leader turned his gaze towards two holograms standing beside each other, one noticeably hunched over making it seem shorter.

"Don't worry leader-sama; my art will make sure that it will be a blast!" The taller shadow exclaimed.

"My spy network has already informed me of her current location; we will set out immediately..." The hunched over figure spoke in a raspy deep male accent.

"Excellent, then this meeting is dismissed!" The leader swiped his hand, cutting off the holographic communication.

* * *

**Well everyone, that has practically set the stage for my new story. Naruto is travelling and training under Mifune, Jiraiya is busy trying to track him down and Akatsuki has begun to make their move! Stay tuned to find out more and of course please make sure to drop me a review to let me know what you think!**

**Also review to let me know the harem members that you want~ once again my usual standard of having no Konoha females other than Yuugao as I have a pretty good plot for her if she is in the harem! Female Kyuubi should be in as well, though that would be no surprise to my usual readers hah~**

**Ja ne~**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto...**

**Yo what's hanging my lovely readers! Glad to see such a fantastic response to a samurai Naruto story, have no fear that it would be discontinued like any of the others! Well one major feedback I have received is that the first chapter happened to be flowing too fast with Naruto abandoning his village and all that...**

**My answer to that is: Well my Naruto is actually more realistic than canon Naruto and his bullshit ideals in a world based on death and trickery. He trusted Mifune because the guy could have just killed him if he wanted to; instead he looked after him which would put him in Naruto's good book since it is a rare occurrence.**

**As for the harem, I'm afraid to say that Fū will not be part of the harem and the reason will be disclosed within the story itself. Uzuki Yuugao is definitely in, along with Terumi Mei and Female Kyuubi. Those will be the three females for now, if someone strikes my fancy as I write then I shall add them in~**

**Anyway, on with the story!**

* * *

Chapter 2: Cascading Falls

"Mifune-sensei, I managed to stabilise my chakra!" An excited young male voice piped up as Uzumaki Naruto held up the glowing blue kunai with a grin.

"Excellent Naruto-totei, now all you have to do is work on performing the feat with as minimal attention required as possible. However that is enough for the moment as we have arrived at our destination..." Mifune said as they descended a dirt path with the merchant caravan.

"Still as amazing as the first time I saw it..." Naruto whispered in awe once they had rounded the corner.

The path had turned into a beautiful valley with cascading waterfalls situated in various places, each of them falling into a small lake of its own and with each lake having a small channel of water that connected them all to a much larger lake right in the centre. In the middle of the giant lake was a giant tree, easily four to five times larger than the largest trees in the forest of Hi no Kuni (Land of Fire). The layout of the village remained basically unchanged with multiple dwellings situated throughout the area, the largest being the village leader's house near the combined lake.

"Takigakure no Sato (Hidden Waterfall Village)... no matter how many times I visit, it always manages to captivate me with its beauty." Mifune said with a smile as they could overhear the mummers of awe from the merchants.

"Halt travellers; please identify yourselves before we allow you any further into our territory!" A voice called out as two Taki shinobi jogged over to the group from their guard posts.

"I'm Mifune, the samurai general of Tetsu no Kuni (Land of Iron) on my annual trip to visit the leaders of various nations and this is my apprentice Naruto." The elderly samurai introduced himself before gesturing to the blonde beside him causing the two guards to bow instantly.

"Welcome back Mifune-sama, I hope you and your apprentice will enjoy your stay here in Takigakure no Sato!" Both of them straightened again before the first guard beckoned them over.

"My partner will continue his guard duty; I will escort you to your prepared room at the Inn... however we have only booked one room for your stay since we weren't aware that you had taken on an apprentice..." The shinobi glanced over at Naruto and seemed to lock gazes with him for a while. "You look really familiar... have we met before?"

Naruto stiffened slightly as he looked up at his mentor with a silent question; he received a response in the form of a shrug so he decided to reveal his identity.

"My name is Uzumaki Naruto; I was part of the Genin team that helped your current leader Shibuki to defeat the traitor who tried to steal the Hero Water." He told the escort.

"Oh! Shibuki-sama will be glad to hear of your return then! Everyone in the village is extremely grateful of your actions, so please accept my formal thanks on behalf of the village!" The Taki shinobi bowed in Naruto's direction, getting an embarrassed blush out of the blonde.

"Ah that's okay... I was just doing my job that's all!" Naruto waved off the thanks without a second thought.

"Strong and modest as well, you're definitely going to go far kid..." The shinobi shook his head with a grin before turning around and looking over his shoulder. "Well enough time to chat later, I have to get you guys up to Shibuki-sama's office!"

"Well lead the way shinobi-san." Mifune said.

The master and apprentice took in the sights of the village as they were lead through the different housing districts as well as the market district before finally arriving at the tallest building in the area. The building seemed to have at least four levels and was painted a royal blue with the village symbol painted in front with cyan paint, they entered the building and walked up to the receptionist.

"Emika, is Shibuki-sama currently available?" Their guide asked the receptionist.

"Ah Sato, for what reason do you need an audience with Shibuki-sama?" Emika asked causing Sato to jerk a thumb over his shoulder at them.

"Not for me, general Mifune and his apprentice just arrived."

Emika peeked over his shoulder and nodded once, "Of course, Shibuki-sama is currently free so just bring them right up... and remember to knock the door this time!"

"Yeah whatever..." Sato drawled as he waved back at her over his shoulder as he faced the duo. "I'll bring you guys up to the office since our leader is currently free at the moment."

"I can't wait to see Shibuki again! I wonder if he has gotten any stronger..." Naruto grinned at the thought of having a spar with Takigakure's own leader.

"Naruto, you would be wise to remember that Shibuki is the leader of a village so you should address him with the proper respect that he deserves..." Mifune chided him softly, getting a sheepish smile of apology from his apprentice.

"Somehow I believe that Shibuki-sama won't mind in the slightest..." Sato laughed as he led them up to the third floor and rapped on an ornamental-looking door.

"Come in!" A familiar voice called from the other side of the doors.

Sato pushed the doors open and strode in to stand before a large mahogany desk; he raised his hand and saluted the man sitting behind the desk. Mifune and Naruto walked in behind the Taki shinobi, immediately drawing the attention of the leader of the village as he laid his eyes on the elderly samurai general.

"Ah! Mifune-sama! What a pleasure to see you again!" Shibuki exclaimed with a smile.

"Likewise Shibuki-san, I trust you are more than acquainted with my apprentice here..." Mifune held back a chuckle when he saw the village leader's eyes bugged out when he looked over at the blonde.

"Naruto? Uzumaki Naruto, is that you?" Shibuki asked as he stood up from his seat and rounded the desk to stand in front of the grinning blonde.

"The one and only!" Naruto replied with a laugh.

"By Kami what are you doing all the way out here? And with Mifune-sama no less? Not that it isn't great to see you again!" Shibuki questioned him.

Naruto could only sigh, "It's great to see you too Shibuki-sama, as for my presence here... well it's a rather long story."

"Just call me Shibuki, no need for formalities especially after what you and Sasuke have done for my village!" Shibuki said with a smile but noticed the flinch when he mentioned the Uchiha's name. "I take it by your flinch that it has something to do with Sasuke-san?"

"Yes... he defected from the village and chose to run off to Orochimaru, an S-class missing-nin from Konoha, for power. I was part of the group that was assigned to chase after him... I failed to stop him." Naruto clenched his fist as he was reminded of his failure.

"Don't tell me your village banished you over something like that?" Shibuki asked with wide eyes.

"Hah no, they wish they could have I bet... I chose to leave the village myself after realising that the village was holding me back. A Jounin-sensei that taught me nothing but the Tree-walking exercise, bigoted idiots that cannot distinguish a kunai from its sealing scroll, achievements written off as nothing... there were hardly any reasons for me to stay loyal to that village."

Shibuki shook his head when he heard the reasons being listed off, "How could such a great and respected village such as Konohagakure no Sato, treat one of their own like this..."

"It's because of something out of his control Shibuki-san, something that every person holding the same burden as him would have experienced... I think you would know, seeing as how your village has someone just like him..." Mifune said cryptically as the gears started turning inside the village leader's head.

"...you don't mean? Naruto is a Jinchuuriki like Fū?" Shibuki exclaimed with shock.

"Yes I am the Jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi no Yoko... due to that burden being placed on me, my whole life has been hell." Naruto confirmed with a sigh before perking up slightly. "Since you mentioned Fū, do you think I can meet her?"

Shibuki and Sato seemed to hesitate at that which quickly drew the suspicion of both master and apprentice; they glanced at each other before looking over at the nervous leader.

"That isn't a problem right? Unless there's something you'd like to tell me?" Mifune asked with an unreadable expression on his face.

"No problem at all Mifune-sama! It's just that... Fū isn't exactly well liked in our village and has experienced many of the things that Naruto probably has as well. As such, she seems to have become... distrusting of people in general. Choosing to isolate herself from the rest of the village..." Shibuki felt sweat pouring down his neck as the Killing Intent in the room rose slightly.

"Were you part of the reason?" Naruto asked dangerously causing the two Takigakure residents in the room to gulp at the tone.

"N-no... actually Sato and I are part of the small group of people that she trusts..." Shibuki heaved an inner sigh of relief when the Killing Intent dropped back to less radical levels.

"Where does she stay?" Naruto asked.

"I told you she doesn't trust other people and will attack the moment she lays her eyes on someone she doesn't trust!" Shibuki tried to reason with the blonde-haired Jinchuuriki.

"I don't care... just tell me where she stays at." Naruto grunted in response as he stared the village leader in the eyes.

"B-but..."

"Just tell him where the girl stays Shibuki-san." Mifune injected with a calm voice with a hint of steel within it.

"Hai... she lives on the island with the giant tree in the middle of the lake." Shibuki sighed in defeat before gesturing to Sato. "Sato will arrange for a boat to-HEY!"

Naruto was already one foot out the door before glancing back over his shoulder, "I'll water-walk over there myself..."

"Be careful Naruto-totei..." Mifune said with a smile.

"Of course Mifune-sensei, I'll be back before you know it..." Naruto replied in kind before sprinting off.

The crimson-yukata clad boy leapt along the rooftops as he travelled towards the large lake, ignoring the stares and whispered mutterings about him as he passed villagers. Eventually he arrived at the edge of the lake; he continued right on without stopping and channelled a slowly fluctuating flow of chakra to the soles of his feet.

'Still can't believe that lazy bastard of a Jounin didn't even bother teaching me this, instead throwing me off to one side to be taught by that closet pervert Ebisu...' Naruto thought with a slight growl.

'**Not to mention that useless super perverted meatbag that didn't teach you anything either during that training period...' **Kyuubi injected suddenly.

'Ah yeah that stupid Ero-sennin as well... at the very least he taught me the Rasengan (Spiralling Sphere)...' Naruto sighed dejectedly when he was once again reminded of how much he was held back by his ex-village.

'**No use brooding over it, don't want to end up like the Uchiha brat... plus you're heading towards the Jinchuuriki of the Nanabi no Kabutomushi now. You can't afford to be going in half-assed especially when you don't know what rank she is...' **Kyuubi reminded him as she narrowed her eyes behind her cage.

'Oh right... so do you like... have any tips or information regarding the Nanabi?' He inquired after a few seconds.

'**As suggested by her title, she has control over all insects... kind of like that clan of bug-using meatbags in Konoha except more powerful and diverse...' **

'The Nanabi is female too... okay regardless! So like fighting an extremely powered up Shino huh... sounds interesting.'

'**Don't underestimate her... she isn't the Nanabi for nothing...'** Kyuubi lapsed into silence after that parting statement.

'Shino used chakra eating insects, which is something that I don't have to worry about with my massive reserves as well as Kyuubi's chakra being toxic to them... however who knows what other kind of insect she can control...' Naruto thought as his foot hit solid dirt once again.

Taking a look around, he noticed that dense jungle surrounded the gigantic tree in the middle. Many of the tree trunks had scars on them, suggesting that many a battle had taken place on this island before.

"Hello... anyone here?" Naruto called out as he cautiously advanced into the jungle, paying careful attention to the forest floor to avoid tripping any traps.

"What do you want?" A feminine voice hissed in response, echoing throughout the jungle and making it impossible to pinpoint her location.

"My name is Uzumaki Naruto... I just want to talk!" He tensed his body as he heard the rustling of leaves and foliage.

"That's what the last person said... before trying to stab me!" The voice yelled in anger as the rustling got closer.

"I'm not like the others... I'm a friend of Shibuki, the one who helped him defeat his traitorous master?"

That seemed to give the rustling a slight pause before the voice replied, "Shibuki-san has told me the story... how do I know you are not just lying to me?"

"...you just have to trust me I guess." Naruto said softly, prompting a huge burst of Killing Intent to flood the jungle.

"Trust you... trust you? Trust is what caused me all this pain and suffering, trust is what turned me into what I am now! Trusting is for fools!" The voice roared in rage as the jungle around him suddenly buzzed to life with the sound of insects.

Naruto leapt up onto a tree branch as he felt the ground shift beneath him, not a second later and the ground collapsed revealing an entire swarm of crimson-armoured ant-like creatures. They were about the size of a thumb each and huge snapping mandibles that clicked together angrily as they gazed up at him.

"Mushiton: Dokubari Rendan (Insect Release: Poison Needle Barrage)!" The voice shouted causing the blonde to leap from tree branch to tree branch to avoid waves of glowing purple stingers that were being launched at him.

"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu (Shadow Clone technique)!" Naruto summoned four shadow clones to aid him in drawing away attention, which worked perfectly as the attack halted. "As I said, I don't want to fight you! I just want to talk!"

"Get off my island... Mushiton: Hotarubi (Insect Release: Firefly Light)!"

Naruto and his clones braced themselves for an attack, only to stare in confusion as small glowing fireflies started to emerge from the forest and float around them. One of the clones held up a finger as a glowing yellow firefly drifted down towards him, the moment the firefly touched the finger it burst into flames and dispelling the clone.

"Oh shi-"

"Katsu (Detonate)!"

The fireflies all instantly exploded with the force of an exploding tag, turning that area of the jungle into a fiery explosion of roaring flames. The scorched body of the blonde-haired Jinchuuriki flew out of the blast radius and slammed into the forest floor with a grunt of pain, the top of his outfit burnt off to reveal charred skin underneath.

"Fuck... that hurt..." He coughed as he struggled back up to his feet.

'**I told you not to underestimate her...' **Kyuubi shook her head inside the seal as she started healing him.

The containment seal appeared in blank ink on his stomach as red chakra bubbled out from it and settled over his upper torso, healing the third-degree burns that covered it.

"Y-you... that chakra! You're a Jinchuuriki like me... you contain the Kyuubi no Yoko?" The voice gasped in surprise causing the buzzing insect life to suddenly go silent.

"Uzumaki Naruto... Jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi no Yoko... at your service..." Naruto grunted as he did a painful bow only to wince in pain.

"Why are you here... did your village send you to assassinate me?" The voice hissed in suspicion.

"What? NO! I'm... no longer part of my village. I am the apprentice of Mifune-sensei, the current samurai general of Tetsu no Kuni." He replied, still trying to pinpoint the source of the voice.

"Jinchuuriki... tell me, was your childhood like mine? Were you too, shunned from the populace due to something that was beyond your control?" Her voice was noticeably less hostile this time around.

"Hai, I too was an outcast within my own village... whatever you have been through Fū, know that you are not alone and that there are seven other people like us out there..."

The silence reigned for the next few moments before the sound of leaves rustling overhead could be heard and a humanoid form dropped out from the canopy and landed on its feet directly in front of him. Naruto curiously took in the sight of the female before him, the Jinchuuriki of the Nanabi no Kabutomushi.

Fū wore an orange clip in her short, spiky mint green hair that matched her eye colour, which was also orange. Her ninja outfit consisted of a short sleeveless white midriff shirt with fishnet armour underneath, long white armlets, and fishnet shorts with a short white apron skirt over it. Her forehead protector was worn on her right arm. Fū also carried a cylindrical object in red wrapping on her back, the purpose of which was unknown to him.

"Uzumaki Naruto..." She whispered before a large grin formed on her face and she crushed him in a hug. "It's so nice to meet a fellow Jinchuuriki, which means you're like my brother ne?"

"Likewise... and I guess we're siblings in a way." Naruto replied hesitantly as he was in shock over the girl's sudden attitude change. 'Man what the hell is up with this chick, one moment she's trying to kill me and the next she's calling me brother and squeezing the life out of me...?'

'**Nanabi has always been the most... immature one in our group. It wouldn't surprise me if her container obtained part of her happy-go-lucky attitude and her multiple personality disorder.' **Kyuubi snorted with amusement.

'Wow an immature Bijū (Tailed Beast)... I think I'm running out of oxygen...' Naruto thought to himself as he quickly broke free of her death hug and took quick gasps of air.

Fū cocked her head to one side for a moment, "Chōmei-chan asked why you would come all the way out here to meet me?"

"Eh, Chōmei?" Naruto voiced in confusion.

"That's the Nanabi no Kabutomushi, it's her name?" Fū replied as if he had just asked the stupidest question in the world.

"That's not fair... Kyuubi-chan won't even tell me hers!" Naruto exclaimed with a pout.

'**Like I would grace a pathetic meatbag like you with my name... and who the fuck are you calling Kyuubi-chan?' **Kyuubi growled from inside the seal.

'Eh but you won't tell me your name... and Kyuubi isn't your name as it's just a title so I decided that Kyuubi-chan would be more acceptable...' Naruto explained through the mental link.

'**...whatever meatbag. It's not like that it bothers me anyway...' **Kyuubi muttered before cutting the link from her end, a warm feeling she had not felt for a long time suddenly blossomed inside her. _**'The last person to call me that was... Tou-san...'**_

"Well as I said, I am currently apprenticed under Mifune-sensei. So he's taking me around the Elemental Nations to learn about other nations and their people and culture... of course whilst teaching me awesome stuff as well!" Naruto said with a grin. "And so when I heard that Takigakure no Sato had a Jinchuuriki as well, I was eager to meet you!"

"Why would you want to meet me?" Fū asked in confusion.

"I mean we're both Jinchuurikis... I thought that maybe we could relate to each other. It's always nice to have someone similar to share with and confide in... I wish that there could have been someone like that in my childhood, it would have made it a whole lot easier..." Naruto sighed sadly.

"...I know what you mean. Only a handful of people like Shibuki-san bother to befriend me... the rest all treat me like some sort of plague-carrier." Fū shook her head slightly as memories threatened to engulf her.

"I wanted to prove them all wrong... to show them that I wasn't the monster they thought I was. Which was why set my sights on becoming the Hokage, so that everyone would acknowledge and respect me... I now realise that I was a fool to have believed that." Naruto whispered with a sad tone.

"Why? I thought it was a good goal..." Fū told him with a frown.

"Then they would be acknowledging me for my prowess and not me as a person... that is not something that I really want. I want them to acknowledge me as Uzumaki Naruto, a person and not for being the Hokage or being the strongest shinobi... unfortunately it will not happen."

"That's true... so what do you plan on doing?" She asked her fellow Jinchuuriki.

"Get stronger under Mifune-sensei's guidance and even stronger beyond that!" Naruto declared loudly with a smirk.

"Why do you want to get so strong?"

"A friend of mine once told me... A person is only truly strong when he has something precious to protect. I have...had many precious people... or so I thought. So my dream is to become strong, stronger than anyone else so that I can protect all my precious people in future!" Naruto shouted out loud as he slammed his fist into an open palm.

"That is a good dream Naruto..." Fū said with a kind smile before giggling and jumping on his back. "Am I one of your precious people too?"

"Of course you are! We Jinchuuriki have to stick together you know!" Naruto laughed as he balanced himself with the added weight on his back.

"Naruto... tell me more about yourself." Fū demanded suddenly causing the blonde to blink in surprise.

"Eh?"

"Tell me about your life, about you in general... then when you're done, I will do the same. That's what friends do right?" Fū asked with a hesitant smile.

"...sure, that sounds like a great idea!" Naruto replied as he begun to tell his tale to the attentive green-haired girl. "It all begin when the Kyuubi attacked Konoha..."

With Mifune and Shibuki

The two leaders were currently sitting in Shibuki's home, more precisely the living room where the window gave them a perfect view of the lake and the island. The large explosion startled them for a bit but relaxed, trusting the blonde-haired boy to be capable of looking after himself.

"This is excellent tea Shibuki-san." Mifune commented as he took a sip from the white porcelain cup in his hand.

"Definitely, it is directly imported from Cha no Kuni (Land of Tea)." Shibuki stated as he took a sip too before setting the cup back on its saucer on the table. "So why the early visit Mifune-sama? You only just visited me a week after my inauguration as the leader of my village a few months back..."

"...I have come to warn you." Mifune said simply as he drained the cup of its contents before setting it down as well.

"Warn me? Warn me about what?" Shibuki asked with a bewildered expression.

"There is a certain organisation... by the name of Akatsuki." He smirked grimly when he saw his fellow leader stiffen up slightly at the mention of that name. "I see you've heard of them..."

"My father has mentioned them before... a mercenary organisation composed entirely out of S-class missing-nin from various villages. I heard that Iwagakure had made use of their services before..." Shibuki explained.

"True... however Akatsuki has been dormant for quite a while... at least until recently. My sources have told me that their activity has suddenly started up again... and the information they brought me is rather troubling." Mifune laced his fingers in front of his face as he sat back against the chair's backrest.

Shibuki gulped nervously as he wondered just what kind of information it was, "And what does this have to do with me or my village?"

"It seems that Akatsuki is looking for something, or to be more specific, nine particular people... people that hold the power of a demon within their hands."

"The Jinchuuriki?"

"Hai, the Jinchuuriki... more precisely, the Bijū that they contain. What they want them for? I have no clue but that kind of firepower under any one person or village is definitely very bad... which was the reason why Senju Hashimara saw fit to evenly distribute the Bijū at first." Mifune explained as he watched sweat trickle down the Takigakure leader's face.

"So you're saying that... Akatsuki might come looking for Fū?" Shibuki very nearly squeaked out.

"No..."

"That's a relief..."

"They're definitely coming to hunt down and capture your Jinchuuriki." Mifune said with a serious expression.

Shibuki opened and closed his mouth several times in a perfect imitation of a goldfish before his eyes rolled up into the back of his head and he fainted right into the chair he was sitting in.

"...that could have gone better."

In Tsunade's office

The blonde female Hokage sighed angrily as she rubbed her temples in frustration before glaring at the three shinobi standing at attention in front of her desk. Despite being elite veterans and clan heads, they all flinched when that glare was turned on them.

"So you're telling me that you tracked a trace of Kyuubi's chakra all the way to a town near the original location and found the stupid pervert over there... and he told you to head back?" Tsunade asked with a slow drawl.

"Hai Tsunade-sama..." All three responded with a gulp.

"And nobody in that town knew where the merchant caravan was headed?"

"Negative Tsunade-sama, the caravan leader never disclosed the next destination of their travels to any of them... a method to reduce the risk of an ambush being laid out on their route by bandits or missing-nin..." Tsume answered.

"Understood... so there was no other trace of Uzumaki Naruto in that area? Nothing at all?" Tsunade seemed almost desperate as she asked.

"The Kyuubi must have been done healing him by then as the trail ended at the Inn... I detected no other traces of the Kyuubi's or the boy's chakra after that..." Hiashi replied with a shake of the head.

"Same as Hiashi-san, my hive couldn't detect either of the chakra... logic dictated that we follow Jiraiya-sama's orders as the trail had already gone cold." Shibi added on in his usual indifferent tone.

"I see... thank you for your time and effort, you will all be paid a B-ranked mission pay for this. Though I have to ask... why did you suddenly volunteer yourselves? Truthfully this time..." Tsunade asked softly.

Tsume sighed as she hung her head, "I was a close friend of Kushina's along with Mikoto, we used to hang out and do everything together... I should have done more for her son... so I guess this was me trying to make it up."

"Same with Tsume, I was a close friend of Minato's... plus Naruto helped me to open Neji's eyes once again. I felt that this is the least I could do for the boy..." Hiashi admitted.

"I was neither close to Yondaime-sama or his wife... however Naruto as a Jinchuuriki would understand the feeling of being an Aburame and the glares of disgust we receive due to having insects inside us. I merely wanted to help the boy..." Shibi said.

"...thank you for being honest, you're dismissed." Tsunade waved them off with her hand, prompting the three to give a curt nod each before leaving through the door.

Just as she was about to slump in her chair and sigh, the door opened again to reveal a deceptively frail, old man holding a walking cane. He had black, shaggy hair, and his right eye was bandaged. He had an x-shaped scar on his chin. He wore a white shirt, with a brown robe over top of it covering from his feet, to just over his right shoulder.

"Shimura Danzo... to what do I owe the honour of this unpleasant visit?" Tsunade spat out with narrowed eyes.

"What's with all the hostility Tsunade-hime? Can't I pay a visit to my Godaime Hokage (Fifth Hokage)?" Danzo asked with a pleasant smile on his aged face.

"Cut the bullshit Danzo! I don't like you or trust you and I know the feeling is mutual... so what are you here for?" Tsunade asked as the fake smile dropped from his face, revealing a neutral expression.

"Uzumaki Naruto... such a disappointment. It really breaks my heart to see such potential go to waste, Jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi no Yoko as well as son of the famous Namikaze Minato and remaining survivor of Uzushiogakure no Sato (Village of the Whirling Tides), Uzumaki Kushina..." Danzo sighed with a smirk on his face.

"You... how did you know?" Tsunade demanded as she slammed a fist on her desk, cracking it slightly.

"Calm yourself Tsunade... did you really expect such important information to escape my notice? I knew ever since that old fool Hiruzen brought that baby back from the battlefield..." He settled himself down on one of the chairs in the office.

Tsunade glared at him, "So where are you going with this...?"

"Hiruzen should have agreed with my request... imagine how strong the boy would have become under my wing... how LOYAL he would have been." Danzo emphasised as he tapped his cane against the floor.

"How emotionless and brainwashed he would have become as well..." Tsunade scoffed in response.

"Who said I was going to enrol him into my Root? I was planning on personally teaching him myself... an apprentice if you will. What would have been the point of an emotionless Jinchuuriki, it would have been redundant! Jinchuuriki fight at their best when they are enraged, of course I would have taught him how to control that rage as well..." Danzo mused.

"...there's no point in saying that now, with Naruto being missing and all." Tsunade sighed as she was unable to refute his logic.

"It is no surprise to me that he would leave... he even left for the same reason his teammate Sasuke did." To his credit the elderly man did not even blink when the Hokage smashed her desk into splinters with her punch.

"Don't you dare compare Naruto to that traitorous Uchiha!"

"True their goals are not the same but their reasons are... they both left because they both felt that the village was holding them back, which was true in Uzumaki's case."

"Wait... what do you mean by that?" Tsunade interrupted with a confused expression.

Danzo shook his head with a sigh, "It's sad really. Being taught only the tree-walking exercise by his Jounin instructor? Then being pawned off to that joke of a shinobi Ebisu to teach him the water-walking exercise? His only real training came in when Jiraiya appeared during the Chunnin Exams and taught him the Kuchiyose no Jutsu (Summoning technique) and Rasengan (Spiralling Sphere)."

"He... he never told me any of this..." Tsunade whispered whilst mentally noting down to have a serious talk with both of the perverts.

"Understandable... especially since he has been hiding behind a mask all this time..." Danzo had to hold back a chuckle when he saw Tsunade's eyes snap open.

"He's been what?"

"Surprising? No, not really. Tsunade, the boy learnt the Rasengan within a month when it took the Yondaime three years to create and Jiraiya a year to learn! He took down the Jinchuuriki of the Ichibi no Tanuki (One-tailed Racoon Dog) by himself... I would go as far as to say that the boy is a genius in hiding." Danzo said with a serious tone.

"Naruto, a genius? You must be joking!" Tsunade exclaimed with a flabbergasted face.

"I am completely serious here Tsunade... if the boy's progress hadn't been intentionally sabotaged by the teachers in the academy at an early age. He would definitely have become or surpassed Uchiha Itachi in terms of prowess... such a waste of potential..." Danzo shook his head in mock sadness.

"...so what do you want?" Tsunade finally asked.

"Nothing much... just to have your permission to fill in the gaps of Team Seven with two of my own shinobi." Danzo replied.

"...I don't see any problem in that. However you'll have to bring them in for an evaluation first..." Tsunade sighed as she relented to his request.

"Of course Hokage-sama, I will have them over in a few hours' time." Danzo said as he rose from his chair and opened the door but left a parting message before leaving. "Remember one thing Tsunade; I am not your enemy... I just want the best for my village, that's all..."

Outside the entrance of Takigakure no Sato

Two figures wearing black coats imprinted with red clouds stood side by side as a Takigakure shinobi walked up to them with a dazed look in his eyes before dropping down to one knee.

"Sasori-sama..." He whispered in greetings.

"Rise... now tell me of the situation in your village at the moment." The hunched-over figure asked, revealing himself to be Sasori.

"Mifune the samurai general of Tetsu no Kuni is visiting along with his apprentice Uzumaki Naruto..." The unknowing spy reported causing the two Akatsuki members to freeze slightly at the information before the upright one suddenly laughed.

"Well looks like Kami-sama is indeed shining down on us artists today Sasori no Danna, yeah? Two for one deal today, I hope Itachi and Kisame won't be mad when he steal their prey, yeah?"

"Shut up Deidara but what you said is true... it must be our lucky day. Maybe leader-sama will let me keep their bodies to use as puppets after we're done extracting the Bijū from their bodies..." Sasori muttered to himself before shooting a senbon into the neck of his spy and knocking him out.

"Though what about this Mifune, he sounds like a pretty big shot..." Deidara voice his concern.

"He is the current leader of the samurai in Tetsu no Kuni and from what I have gathered over the years, definitely no pushover either. I heard he fought against Salamander Hanzo in his prime and earned the man's respect, something that only the Sannin of Konoha had done..." Sasori said before further elaborating. "He is a master of Iaidou (Way of Iai), which is a specific style of kenjutsu that is concerned with the smooth, controlled movements of drawing the sword from its scabbard, striking or cutting an opponent, removing blood from the blade, and then replacing the sword in the scabbard."

"That's a scary kenjutsu style, yeah?" Deidara whistled after hearing the explanation.

"Agreed, I would safely put him on par with a Kage... so we should steer clear of him if possible. If not then one of us had to distract him whilst the other defeats the two Jinchuuriki and capture them, worst case scenario we grab the Nanabi Jinchuuriki and bug out..." Sasori told his partner getting a laugh from him.

"Hahaha bug out... I see what you did there..." Deidara smirked before shoving his hands into the pouches strapped to his waist and pulled them out to reveal two identical clay birds.

With a simple command the two clay birds suddenly came to life before expanding in size, allowing the two Akatsuki members to leap onto their backs and take off into the sky.

With Naruto and Fū

The duo had spent around an hour or more finding out about each other, they can safely say that they definitely know almost everything about each other now. They were now sitting beside each other under the giant tree in the middle of the island, their backs resting against its trunk.

"I still can't believe you painted the entire Hokage monument in the daytime whilst wearing an orange jumpsuit and nobody noticed you!" Fū giggled as she imagined the scenario in her head.

"That's because I'm the best Fū-chan!" Naruto exclaimed as he puffed out his chest with a grin.

"As if Naruto-kun, I still kicked your ass in our fight!" Fū reminded him as she jabbed a finger into his chest.

"Oh yeah? Well I bet I would beat you the next time we-GET DOWN!" Naruto shouted mid-sentence before tackling Fū away from their spot just as two white blurs slammed into it and detonated in two large explosions.

"What the hell was that?" Fū screamed as she leapt to her feet followed by Naruto, the two of them scanning their surroundings.

They were saved from the trouble when two figures landed in front of them causing both of their eyes to widen in recognition and then fear as they recognised the cloak.

"Akatsuki..." Naruto cursed as he quickly drew out two kunai and clutched them in his hand.

"They're that group that's hunting us for our Bijū right?" Fū asked seriously, having slipped into her battle personality.

"Well, looks like the two brats are well informed eh Sasori no Danna?" Deidara chuckled before they both sealed their hats, revealing him to be a feminine looking male with long blonde hair.

"It doesn't matter since they're coming with us anyway." Sasori grunted, his face was strange to say the least.

"As if I'm going to let you take Nanabi from me!" Fū shouted as the insects of the jungle buzzed to life around her.

"Yeah, the same goes for me and Kyuubi!" Naruto shouted as well, his kunai humming to life with a blue glow.

'**Thanks meatbag, I'm really feeling the love here...'** Kyuubi had re-established the mental link sometime during the two Jinchuurikis conversation and knew of their current predicament. **'You know that you stand no chance against two S-rank missing-nin right?'**

'I know...' Naruto replied with gritted teeth. 'However this is the only thing we can do until Mifune-sensei and help arrives...'

"Looks like the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki really has been training under the samurai general, that's the technique that samurai use to strengthen their katanas..." Sasori remarked gruffly before his jaw suddenly unhinged and a spray of senbon shot out.

The two Jinchuuriki quickly dove for cover as the senbon punctured the forest floor as well as several tree trunks, Fū cursed when she noticed the senbon near her hiding place were covered in a dark purple liquid.

"Naruto! The senbon are covered in some kind of poison, don't let even one of them touch you!" Fū yelled from her cover.

"Won't our Bijū purge the poison from our system anyways?" Naruto asked as he tumbled from his cover as it exploded and came up next to her.

"True but it will take time and we will still feel the poison's effects before its purged, we can't afford that if these two are S-ranked missing-nin. And going by what the blonde one said, the hunched over figure is Akasuna no Sasori (Sasori of the Red sand)... a missing-nin from Sunagakure no Sato (Hidden Sand Village). He was their strongest puppet master before defecting and definitely still the strongest up to now..." Fū told him before they had to leap up onto separate tree branches just as their cover was blown up.

"What about the crazy blonde transvestite with the bombs?" Naruto shouted out loud getting the reaction he expected.

"Oui! I'm not a transvestite you stupid brat, yeah!" Deidara roared in outrage as he released a barrage of small clay birds, which homed in on their targets location.

"I'm not sure... could be a Bakuton (Explosive Release) user from Iwagakure no Sato (Hidden Rock Village)!" Fū replied as she flung several kunai and detonated all the clay missiles before they could reach her.

Naruto chose to dive off the branch and landed in a crouch on the ground causing the homing explosives to slam into the tree he had just vacated, blowing it to splinters. He took a shaky step backwards that saved his life as the tip of Sasori's metal tail erupted from the dirt just an inch from his face, the poison coating it clearly visible.

"Fuck this shit..." Naruto cursed as he formed a cross-shaped handseal with his fingers, four shadow clones appeared around him in formation.

The clones each had their own pair of chakra-enhanced kunai held in their hands, they charged towards the Akatsuki duo with their weapons brandished in front of them. Sasori easily deflected all the strikes by using his metal tail to parry all the incoming blows while his partner just stood there and absorbed the blows into his body with a grin, revealing that it was actually a clay clone which exploded and dispelled all the clones.

"Deidara you little bastard, watch what you're doing..." Sasori growled as the smoke cleared to show that he had soot covering him and his cloak.

"Sorry Sasori no Danna but I just can't contain myself when I get to show people my art because... ART IS A BLAST!" Deidara cackled in glee as he held his fingers up in a handseal. "Meet my beautiful creations..."

The two Jinchuurikis blinked in confusion when nothing appeared when they both felt something crawling up their body, their eyes flew wide in shock when they saw several clay spiders.

"Son of a-"

"KATSU!"

Deidara's command was nearly drowned out by the resulting dual explosions that sounded throughout the jungle, twin columns of black smoke rising into the air.

"Deidara you moron, you better hope that they're still alive..." Sasori grunted before glancing up at the rapidly rising plumes of black smoke. "Well if they didn't know we were here before..."

The smoke cleared to reveal two charred logs and blackened ground but no bodies, alerting the two S-ranked missing-nins to the use of the Kawarimi no Jutsu (Substitution technique) to escape the blast. Sasori shifted his scorpion-like tail into an attacking pose, his eyes scanning the area and waiting for a counter attack.

Naruto and his fellow Jinchuuriki were panting as they hid from the two Akatsuki members, their bodies a little bruised and battered but nothing serious yet.

"They're out of our league... what are we supposed to do?" Fū asked with a hint of panic in her voice.

Naruto looked around as he desperately tried to think of a plan, his brain thinking back to his battle with Fū and how she used the terrain to her advantage. A smile slowly worked its way onto his face as a plan started coming together; he turned towards his partner with an evil grin.

"Say... do you think they have any bug spray?"

With the Akatsuki duo

Deidara and Sasori were cautiously moving through the jungle foliage before pausing when they felt a huge pulse of chakra usage and suddenly they were surrounded by blonde-haired boys with grinning visages. Deidara returned the grin as he stuck his hands into his pouches in preparation as Sasori unhinged his jaw, the glint of steel showing in his mouth.

"This tactic again? When will you learn that quality wins over quantity every time, yeah?" Deidara mocked before the wave of shadow clones descended on them.

Sasori had trouble dodging with his bulky frame and giant metal stinger so he chose to block and counter using said stinger, impaling and slicing through clones with deadly precision whilst firing senbons at every available opportunity. Deidara chose to play on the safe side due to being in such close quarters, sticking with his smaller explosives and taijutsu.

"Mushiton: Aridzuka o Yaku (Insect Release: Burning Anthill)!" Fū called out as she slammed her palm onto the ground causing the dirt beneath the mass fight to collapse into a pit, a pit filled with the armoured crimson ant-like insects with giant mandibles.

"Hey what the- Fuck! You stupid ants, stop biting me yeah!" Deidara growled in annoyance as the insects bit into his clothing and flesh while his partner seemed to have no reaction whatsoever to the insects bites.

"Stop whining about some measly insect bites." Sasori said as he dispatched another clone by stabbing it through the chest.

"That's easy for you to say! Your entire body is a stupid puppet; you can't even feel any of their bites yeah!" Deidara yelled with a tick mark on his brow.

"What did you call my art?" Sasori glared at him.

As the two Akatsuki members were arguing over the finer points of art, Fū had overheard their conversation and was already preparing for her second part of the plan.

"So your body is a puppet huh... too bad I don't have any termites with me now so you'll have to settle for being firewood." Fū muttered to herself with a grin.

"Mushiton: Dai Hotarubi (Insect Release: Great Firefly Gathering)!"

Hundreds of yellow-glowing fireflies floated out from the surrounding jungle and into the pit, bathing the occupants in an ominous yellow glow that stopped the bickering.

"What the hell are those... fireflies?" Deidara asked with a cocked eyebrow.

"It looks like it..." Sasori growled as he swatted yet another handful of clones away with his tail.

"Hmm what was it you said..." Naruto's voice drifted down into the pit causing them to look up to see an evil grin on his face. "Oh yeah... Art is a blast!"

"Katsu!" Fū snapped her fingers.

A flash of yellow light was followed by an earth-shaking explosion, a pillar of roaring flames erupting out of the pit and into the sky. Naruto and Fū dug their fingers in their ears as their respective Bijū healed their blown eardrums, both with tired but happy expressions on their face.

It did not last very long as two amused chuckles sounded from behind them and they spun around to see both Akatsuki members completely unharmed, their clothes not even torn.

"H-how?" Naruto stammered in fear.

"Did you really think we would walk into a trap like that?" Sasori shook his head in amusement.

"Both of them were just clay clones of mine but man that was a really artistic explosion, yeah?" Deidara whistled in appreciation.

Sasori raised his left arm which appeared to be some kind of weird contraption attached to it, "Enough playing around, I can sense multiple chakra signatures approaching..."

"Must be Mifune-sensei and Shibuki along with some Takigakure shinobi..." Naruto whispered under his breath, getting a grunt of agreement from the green-haired girl.

"Kugutsu no Jutsu: Gishu Senbon (Puppet technique: Prosthetic Arm Needles)." Sasori launched the contraption directly at them causing them to dive to the sides to avoid it, getting a smirk from the puppet user.

The bulky arm-like missile suddenly fired off the wooden cylinders connected to it, which then opened up to release a hail of poison-coated senbon in all directions. Unprepared and unsuspecting, the two Jinchuuriki were caught by the surprise technique and were punctured in multiple places by the needles.

"Inside those needles are strong paralytic poisons of my own making. A normal full-grown adult would have fully succumbed to its effects and died within a span of three days but since you two are Jinchuuriki, I have no doubt that you will survive." Sasori said as he retracted his now empty left hand back into the cloak.

"S-shit..." Naruto swore as his vision started to turn hazy. 'Kyuubi a little help...'

'**I'm working on it...'** The demoness responded as she tried to purge the toxin as fast as possible.

Fū seemed to have a higher resistance to the poison as she stood her ground, only a slight occasional squinting of the eyes gave away her condition. A red chakra cloak bubbled out from her seal and surrounded her as she called upon the Nanabi's power, giving her a pair of wings on her pack as well.

Sasori unlatched his mouth once again and released a shower of senbon at her, which proved to be useless as the needles melted upon contact with her Jinchuuriki cloak. Fū took off into the air and charged towards them whilst performing aerial stunts to evade the exploding clay birds that Deidara was chucking at her.

"Rasengan!" Naruto shouted as he appeared behind the ex-Iwagakure shinobi and slammed the orb of condensed spiralling chakra into his back.

The attack drilled into the Akatsuki member's skin until it suddenly turned white and pasty, revealing it to be another clay clone which had trapped Naruto's arm within its body and refused to release him. A few seconds later and the clone detonated, the force of the explosion sending the blonde-haired boy sailing through the air and smacking against a thick tree trunk. Naruto looked up to see Sasori had an unconscious and cut-up Fū in his tail's grasp while the bomber shinobi was reaching out to grab him.

"Just come along quietly, yeah?" Deidara taunted as he reached for the injured boy before his arm was suddenly severed at the elbow, leaving a bleeding stump behind.

"Make another move towards my apprentice and I'll take your other arm off as well..." Mifune whispered dangerously with his hand resting on his sheathed katana.

"...you old bastard! You cut off my beautiful arm, how am I supposed to make my art now yeah?" Deidara screamed in outrage as he waved his bleeding stump around.

Shibuki, Sato and several other Takigakure shinobi appeared at that moment. All of them currently utilising the famed Takigakure-Ryū: Mizukiri no Yaiba (Hidden Waterfall Style: Water-cutting Blade), Shibuki stepped forward and pointed the water blade at Sasori.

"Release Fū immediately, you're vastly outnumbered!" He demanded with an angry glare.

"...Deidara pick up your arm. We've acquired our target already, leave the Uzumaki brat." Sasori whispered harshly to his partner, who seemed reluctant but did as he was told before whistling aloud.

"It's been a blast but we really have to go now..." Deidara gave them a salute using his severed arm before a giant clay bird swooped down and picked them up.

A hail of shuriken, kunai and water ninjutsu shot after the fleeing missing-nin but all fell short as the Akatsuki members escaped cleanly with their target.

"Damn it... DAMN IT!" Shibuki shouted as he pounded a nearby tree trunk.

"Shibuki calm yourself, there's nothing we could have done especially on such short notice..." Mifune said as he placed a hand on the angered leader's shoulder to calm him down.

Shibuki took a deep breath to regulate his rage before asking, "What of Naruto is he alright?"

"He's alright; the Kyuubi is already purging the paralytic poison from his system... the battle still proved to be pretty tiring for him so he's currently unconscious." Mifune gestured to the sleeping blonde behind him.

"You know he's going to go ballistic when he realises he failed to protect Fū right?" Shibuki asked the samurai general, who could only nod sadly.

"It is inevitable... the sooner he realises that he can't protect everyone the better."

In Konohagakure no Sato, Hokage's office

Tsunade was sitting behind her desk as she gazed at the folder placed on her table, the shinobi career file of one of her top ANBU agents. ANBU Captain Neko, otherwise known as Uzuki Yuugao underneath the mask.

The beautiful purple-haired kunoichi had a spectacular record, graduating as the rookie of the year in the same year as Uchiha Itachi albeit in the actual graduation exams. She made it to Chunnin on her first try in the Chunnin Examinations that were held in Sunagakure no Sato that year, one year later and she was field-promoted to Jounin.

Not soon after the skilled kunoichi had applied to enter the elusive and prestigious organisation known as Ansatsu Senjutsu Tokushu Butai (Special Assassination and Tactical Squad) or ANBU for short. Also passing the entrance exam on her first try, she quickly ascended the ranks and was the third youngest to achieve ANBU Captain at age fifteen. With the first being Uchiha Itachi at age thirteen and Hatake Kakashi at age fourteen.

Tsunade consulted the file further and found a recent psych report from the head of the Yamanaka clan, Yamanaka Inoichi.

'_Uzuki Yuugao was always a caring and loyal person, also known to putting her all into whatever task is given to her. However the recent loss of her lover, Gekko Hayate, has affected her in many ways. She seems to have closed up all her emotions and seems hell-bent on avenging his death, a disturbingly familiar goal to that of one Uchiha Sasuke. Attempts to get her to open up further have either resulted in failure or threats of... castration via her katana. Suggest she seek some form of help as soon as possible...'_

The Godaime Hokage sighed as she closed the folder just as said kunoichi appeared in a Shunshin no Jutsu (Body Flicker technique), she took the time to look over her appearance. Her usually mesmerizing straight purple hair was roughed up and caked with dried blood, her standard issue ANBU uniform and armour had traces of dried blood as well as the porcelain cat mask on her face. All in all, the ANBU Captain definitely looked like she had better days.

"Neko-taicho, back so soon?" Tsunade asked with feigned surprise.

"Hai Hokage-sama, I have accomplished my mission." The ANBU Captain responded in a tone that was seemingly devoid of life, she then deposited a sealing scroll onto the desk. "Within the scroll contains the heads of several of Orochimaru's scientists and subjects from his hidden base you had dispatched me too."

"Excellent work, your A-ranked mission pay will be deposited directly into your account." Tsunade said as she placed the scroll to the side.

"Hokage-sama... has any breakthroughs regarding the identity of Hayate's murderer surfaced?" Yuugao asked suddenly.

"No, not yet. We are still on shaky grounds with Sunagakure no Sato especially with them lacking a Kazekage at the moment... rest assured that if anything is revealed I will tell you right away." Tsunade lied expertly since it would be bad if the purple-haired captain discovered that the current acting Kazekage, Baki, was the man responsible.

"I see... then I would like to request another mission Hokage-sama. S-ranked preferably if you have it..." Yuugao asked.

Tsunade sighed as she ran a hand down her face, "Yuugao please remove your mask..."

The ANBU Captain did as she was told; revealing a face that despite its haunted and sleep-deprived look was still extremely beautiful. Tired chocolate-brown eyes gazed back at her; the blonde-haired Kage recognised the look in her eyes. It was the same look she had when she had lost Dan in the field, the same look when she lost her brother Nawaki.

"Yuugao... when was the last time you got any sleep?" Tsunade asked in concern, seeing the deep eye-bags under her subordinate's eyes.

"A few hours here and there across the week..."

"By Kami, how are you even still awake and standing?"

"I can't sleep... the nightmares... the dreams. They're too painful... too realistic. I'm afraid if I fall asleep, I won't ever want to wake up again..." Yuugao replied as she looked down at the floor.

"As your Hokage and as a medical shinobi, I cannot allow you to head out on a mission in your current state." Tsunade stated causing the woman's head to snap up.

"No! I'm perfectly alright, I can do it!" Yuugao shouted as she righted herself, desperation clear in her voice.

"Yuugao, I know what you're feeling... I too lost my lover when I was around your age." Tsunade told the ANBU Captain in a gentle tone.

"Then you would understand, I need something to do... something to focus on to keep the memories away! Please..." Yuugao pleaded with tears in the corner of her eyes.

Looking at the once proud and confidant ANBU Captain reduced into such a sorry state broke the Slug-Sannin's heart, "Fine... here you go. A simple assassination of a Mafia group leader in a town not too far from Konoha..."

"...arigatou Tsunade-sama, I won't fail you." Yuugao bowed before disappearing in a swirl of leaves.

A knock on her door sounded almost instantaneously afterward, she shouted for them to enter and the door opened for Danzo to enter followed by two young males around the same age as Naruto and his friends.

"I heard your conversation... it's always hard to lose a loved one..." Danzo commented with a strange expression on his face, as if he was reminiscing about something.

"Let's skip straight to the point, I take it this two are the candidates? Part of your Root ANBU?" Tsunade asked with distaste evident on her face.

"Actually no, they are my own personal apprentices. However they still have gone through emotional reconditioning albeit to a lesser extent, just enough to have them control their own emotions." Danzo explained as he gestured for the two boys to step forward.

Both boys wore a smaller variant of the uniform worn by regular ANBU units along with their Hitai-te, which was where the similarities end. The first boy had grey shoulder-length hair and black eyes; he had the usual shuriken and kunai pouches strapped to his upper thighs. In addition he had a giant shuriken attached to his back along with a simple tanto.

The second boy had short, black hair and black eyes which contrasted greatly with his very pale skin tone. Instead of the usual pouches strapped to his thighs, he had a noticeably larger pouch strapped to his right thigh. He also carried a tip-less tanto on his back.

"What are their names?" Tsunade asked getting a mysterious smile from the old war-hawk.

"I would like to introduce you to Shin and Sai..."

* * *

**Holy crap, finally done with this chapter! Lots of things happening in this chapter eh? Naruto meeting Fū, her subsequent capture at the hands of Sasori and Deidara, the introduction of Yuugao and a surprise from Danzo in the form of Shin and Sai being his personal students! *le gasp***

**As you can see I'm actually taking a more realistic approach with this story in comparison to my other fanfics, no jumping into romances and no suddenly over-powered Naruto! So much appreciation if you review and let me know your thoughts alright?**

**Ja ne~**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto...**

**Hey everyone, it has been a really long time since I last updated a story and for that I apologise from the deepest depths of my heart. I am entering service into my country's army on the 13th of June, which means I will be inactive for a very long time. So I hope to update as much as possible before I have to enter, the first of which will be this story! **

**Also just watched Blood Prison again, thinking of including Ryuuzetsu into the harem. Thoughts?**

**Well now I'm back with this chapter of Path of the Samurai and without any further delay, enjoy!**

* * *

Chapter 3: The path I walk

_Konohagakure no Sato_

_Hokage's office_

_10 00_

Senju Tsunade, the Godaime Hokage of Konoha, looked up from her paperwork as the sound of multiple footfalls sounded from the corridor outside her office followed by someone rapping their knuckle against the door.

"Enter!" She called out tersely as she gladly shoved her paperwork off to one corner of her desk as the door to the office swung open and people started filing in one by one.

Raking her hazel eyes over the gathered audience, she noted that everyone she had called for was in attendance. First there was the remainder of Team Seven, consisting of Haruno Sakura and Hatake Kakashi. Team Eight consisting of Inuzuka Kiba, Hyuuga Hinata, Aburame Shino and their Jounin instructor Yuuhi Kurenai, Team Nine consisting of Rock Lee, Higurashi Tenten, Hyuuga Neji and their rather eccentric Jounin instructor Maito Gai, Team Ten consisting of Nara Shikamaru, Akimichi Chouji, Yamanaka Ino and their laidback Jounin instructor Sarutobi Asuma.

In addition, Umino Iruka, Shizune, Morino Ibiki and Mitarashi Anko were in attendance as well. To her right stood the bandaged figure of one Shimura Danzo with his two apprentices while on her left stood the intimidating figure of Jiraiya of the Sannin. Observing them keenly, she was pleased to note that the Genins involved in the Uchiha retrieval mission were well on their road to recovery.

"Now... I'm sure the majority of you are wondering why you are gathered here am I right?" Tsunade asked in a rather subdued tone, getting many small nods of acknowledgement. "Well the reason is regarding the Uchiha retrieval mission..."

Immediately chatter burst out across the room as people started asking questions before a particularly loud voice belonging to the pink-haired Genin of Team Seven broke through, "What happened to Sasuke-kun? Did Naruto bring him back?!"

"...no. The Uchiha retrieval mission was a failure, Uchiha Sasuke managed to cross the border and is now probably in the hands of Orochimaru." Tsunade replied with a sigh as an even louder din erupted through the office.

"Failed... b-but Naruto promised me he would bring Sasuke-kun back! He promised! I can't believe that baka (idiot) broke his promise, I'm going to pound his head in when I see him again!" Sakura screamed as tears of anger and sadness fell from her eyes.

Tsunade growled lowly as she glared at the pink-haired Genin, "What makes you so sure you would ever see him again? Especially since he seems to have left the village as well, all because of that fucking Uchiha brat you worship!"

"W-what?" Sakura stammered as her eyes widened at the news.

"You heard me... Uzumaki Naruto seems to have left as well. We are unsure if it was by his own choice or against it but all we managed to recover was his Hitai-ate (Forehead Protector) abandoned at the edge of the forest..." Tsunade said solemnly as she placed said item on her desk, getting a gasp from the scarred Chunnin Instructor.

"That's definitely Naruto's... I would recognise it anywhere as it was my old Hitai-ate that I had passed to him as a present for graduating the Genin Exams..." Iruka spoke up with a soft smile as he recalled that particular event.

There was a small period of shocked silence that filled the office before everyone suddenly burst out asking questions and shouting causing the Senju heiress to slam a fist on her desk, "SHUT UP!"

"...that's better. Now one at a time..." She said before pointing at Kiba.

"Hokage-sama I mean no disrespect but... this is Naruto we're talking about here! The same blonde idiot that would play pranks, annoy people and proclaim that he would become Hokage almost nonstop... there's no way he would abandon the village!" Kiba pointed out, getting many nods from the audience.

"I-I agree w-with K-Kiba-kun... N-Naruto-kun isn't t-the kind of p-person to d-do that..." Hinata stuttered as she poked her fingers together. 'I hope you're safe Naruto-kun...'

"I too agree with Kiba. While Naruto may be loud, annoying and brash... he was definitely loyal to a fault." Ino added on.

Tsunade found herself agreeing with all their points, which was why she found it so hard to believe that the blonde hyperactive Genin would ever willingly abandon the village he so desperately wanted to be leader off. Her eyes landed on a slightly frowning Shikamaru as he gazed at the Hitai-ate on the table, deep in thought.

"Nara! What are your thoughts on this?" Tsunade asked causing the lazy shinobi to sigh dramatically.

"Troublesome... at first I too find it impossible that Naruto would abandon Konoha and his dreams of becoming Hokage." Shikamaru replied slowly as if he was still fitting the pieces of the puzzle together. "However... what is the number one rule that every shinobi learns in the shinobi academy..."

"Deception is key..." Danzo muttered before his lone eye widened slightly. "Chunnin... surely you don't suggest that Uzumaki had been leading us on this entire time?"

"I know it sounds a little farfetched but bear with me for a moment..." Shikamaru said as he placed his hands together in his signature thinking position with his eyes closed. "First off, everyone wrote him off as a failure of a shinobi because he couldn't perform the Bunshin no Jutsu (Clone Technique) during the academy... am I right Iruka-sensei?"

Iruka seemed startled for a moment before looking down sadly, "Hai... no matter how much I tried to help, it seemed like he could never form the required three clones to pass."

"Yet he managed to learn a more advanced clone technique, the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu (Shadow Clone Technique) through an unknown means... or at the very least, unknown to our graduating class." Shikamaru opened his eyes and looked directly into his academy teacher's own.

"Well seems like you caught on..." Iruka sighed, getting looks from everyone in the room. "With the Sandaime dead, I am the only person here who knows the truth of Naruto passing the Genin Exams."

"What do you mean the truth? Didn't he pass some make-up test like you told us?" Chouji asked in confusion.

"No... the truth is he helped defeat Mizuki, who was a traitor to Konoha and had tricked Naruto into stealing the Forbidden Scroll located within the Hokage vault..." Iruka then proceeded to recount the entire events of that particular night, shocking almost everyone in the room.

"Troublesome... but this just adds more weight to my theory. Naruto managed to learn a Kinjutsu (Forbidden Technique) from a scroll within an hour... however the regular clone technique lay beyond his grasp despite years of practice and tutoring. Or should I say, he could never be able to perform it at all." The Nara continued on as he closed his eyes again.

"The brat is right... the Bunshin no Jutsu required only miniscule amounts of chakra to create. And for a chakra powerhouse like Naruto, his reserves were simply too large to perform such a small scale technique like that... hence why the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu was a perfect replacement for him." Jiraiya explained.

"Exactly, also Naruto recently had another jutsu added to his current arsenal... the Rasengan (Spiralling Sphere). The famous A-ranked technique that the Yondaime Hokage himself took three years to create, I would assume both Kakashi-sensei and Jiraiya-sama learnt the jutsu as well?"

"I tried copying it using the Sharingan but it came out incomplete and unstable, it took me a further six months to learn how to stabilise it properly and even then it still couldn't match up to the original..." Kakashi admitted with a sign.

"Minato taught it to me, I took a year to get it down... and I'm starting to see where you're coming from." Jiraiya stated as the gears in his head started turning as well. "Naruto only took a week to perform a fully stable and working Rasengan, albeit with the help of a shadow clone..."

"Naruto, the one everyone claims to be an idiot, took a week to learn an A-ranked jutsu that took a Sannin a year to learn... Kakashi-sensei, who was the one that made the Wave mission successful?" Shikamaru asked the silver-haired Jounin.

"It was Sasuke-kun of course!" Sakura cut in with a smile, getting a fierce glare from the normally docile Nara.

"Did I ask you? No, I asked your sensei. So keep your trap shut!" Shikamaru hissed, getting wide eyed looks from everyone in the room.

"Umm... it was Naruto who taught up the plan to save me from A-ranked missing-nin Momochi Zabuza after he had captured me in his jutsu. Naruto saved the client's daughter and grandson from being kidnapped and used as bargaining tools, he also saved Sasuke from the Hyoton (Ice Release) wielding accomplice of Zabuza and finally inspiring the people of Nami no Kuni (Land of Waves) to stand up for themselves... they named the bridge after him as thanks." Kakashi replied truthfully.

"Naruto once again proving his moniker as the dead-last wrong as he will continue to do so at almost every turn... it was Naruto who saved Daimyo Koyuki and defeated Dotou in the Yuki no Kuni (Land of Snow), he defeated Kiba in the preliminaries, then proving everyone wrong by defeating the 'Hyuuga prodigy' Neji in the finals and then going on to summon Gamabunta to defeat the Ichibi Jinchuuriki, Sabaku no Gaara, in his fully released form." Shikamaru listed instance after instance of Naruto saving the day.

"So you're saying that blonde gaki was really a genius in hiding?" Anko asked.

"I'm not just saying it... I'm completely certain that he is a genius in hiding. One last thing is something that I have never told anyone before, something kept between Naruto and myself only..." Shikamaru paused as he took a deep breath and sighed. "Naruto often hung out with me just to play Shogi... and I have never beaten him once."

"Are you serious?!" Asuma exclaimed as he dropped his lighter in shock.

"Huh? What's the big deal... it's only a game..." Sakura said.

"Shogi is a game that involves a lot of thinking and an excellent strategic mind as well as the ability to think up new strategies on the go as the situation demands... and Shikamaru has only ever lost to one other person..." Asuma explained before looking over to his student.

"...my father, Nara Shikaku. The head of the Intelligence Gathering department as well as Head Jounin of the shinobi corps..." Shikamaru told them, getting gasps of disbelief.

"B-but he always failed all his written tests in class!" Ino shouted.

"Correct... however there are many different kinds of genius. And Naruto just happens to be a genius on the battlefield; he was able to think up multiple strategies in the blink of an eye whenever I played against him. And the thing is his strategies were always unpredictable... which is what makes him deadly in the field." The pineapple-haired Chunnin sighed again as he finished explaining.

"Amazing... that Uzumaki has managed to fool us all... truly remarkable..." Danzo whispered to himself, further regretting being unable to teach the blonde shinobi.

"So what does he being a genius have to do with him leaving the village?" Tsunade asked with narrowed eyes as her mind absorbed all the new information being exposed.

"That is part two of my theory... why would Uzumaki Naruto resort to hiding his true skills from people that are supposed to be his comrades and friends? What would cause him to create his mask, that fake happy go lucky persona that he always wore...?" Shikamaru noticed the way the adults in the room seemed to stiffen up slightly, further increasing his suspicion.

"What do you mean...? I mean sure he was an orphan but was it really that bad?" Tenten asked.

"I wondered that too and then remembered that his birthday was on the tenth of October... the day of the Kyuubi's attack." Shikamaru replied as he started pacing the available space in the room. "That still doesn't add up though... why would being born on the date of the Kyuubi's attack cause any form of issue for him?"

"Didn't Yondaime-sama kill the Kyuubi? Isn't that why we celebrate the Kyuubi festival every year on that date? So shouldn't it be great to be born on that day?" Lee asked with his thick eyebrows knitted together in confusion.

"Supposedly... just like how it was 'supposedly' impossible to kill a Bijū (Tailed-Beast) yet they claimed that the Yondaime Hokage managed to kill the Kyuubi no Yoko. What I think is that he couldn't kill the Kyuubi so he did the next best thing when it came to a Bijū, he sealed it inside a baby and not just any baby... he sealed it inside Uzumaki Naruto, making him the Jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi no Yoko. Am I right Hokage-sama?" Shikamaru stopped pacing as he looked right at the blonde-haired female Kage.

"...sometimes you Nara are just too damn smart for your own good." Tsunade sighed as she pressed a finger to a seal on the underside of her desk and channelled some of her chakra into it to activate it. "I've just activated a silencing seal so whatever I am about to disclose to you will not leave this room. Failure to comply will result in punishment fitting off the exposure of an S-ranked secret, which is public execution..."

A series of nervous gulps followed that statement before Jiraiya stepped forward and cleared his throat, "I believe I should be the one to explain this as I was Minato's sensei... yes you are right in your assumption that Naruto is indeed the Kyuubi's Jinchuuriki. Minato couldn't kill the Kyuubi so he performed the only remaining action possible... he sealed it into Naruto in hopes that he would learn how to control the Kyuubi's power."

"Wasn't the Kyuubi said to be a force of nature, capable of causing Tsunamis and Earthquakes with barely any effort? How could someone seal something so powerful and even if that was possible, how could anyone managed to tame such a scary power?" Neji asked in a subdued tone, finally realising that Naruto had lived his life under the oppression of a seal he never wanted as well.

"Minato was a genius... a true genius that really only comes along once in every generation. He excelled especially in the department of Fuuinjutsu (Sealing Techniques), going so far as to invent the jutsu which made him famous throughout the Elemental Nations... the Hiraishin no Jutsu (Flying Thunder God Technique)." Jiraiya stated with a prideful smile at the accomplishments of his deceased student.

"So the Yondaime used his superior knowledge of Fuuinjutsu to seal the Kyuubi into Naruto... probably using some kind of suppressor seal to keep the Kyuubi from influencing Naruto yet allowing him to access Kyuubi's chakra. So it wasn't because of the pranks that Naruto was glared at... it was because he was the container of the Kyuubi." Shikamaru deduced with a sigh.

"That's correct. You have no idea how many times I had to save him from drunken mobs when I was still serving in the ANBU division..." Kakashi said sadly.

Tsunade silently observed the shifting expressions of the people in her office, Danzo and Jiraiya had their poker faces on and gave nothing away as to what they might be thinking. She noticed as Anko's hand drifted over the Cursed Mark on her shoulder, both Ibiki and Kurenai giving her sympathetic glances.

'He was just like me... shunned for something beyond our control... I should've reached out to him instead of wallowing in my own self-pity.' Anko thought with a grimace.

'I should've paid more attention to Naruto... how can I ever face Minato-sensei again knowing that I had failed to uphold his teachings and ignored his son...' Kakashi thought with regret and depression.

'So he too knew the burden that came with being oppressed by a seal yet he did not allow it to negatively affect him... you are truly strong Naruto and I will forever be in your debt for opening my eyes to my own faults.' Neji closed his eyes and silently wished his absent friend to be safe.

'Naruto-kun... you are so strong... I wish I could be more like you... I want to get stronger so I can bring you back to the village...' Hinata vowed to herself.

'Naruto always had this burden within him... yet he still kept trying to keep up his cheerful façade... and I belittled him for it... what kind of person am I?' Were the shared thoughts of both Ino and Sakura, looking at each other with downtrodden expressions.

"So the reason he left is because he couldn't put up with the village's bullshit any longer... and the fact that he might possibly never achieve his dream of being Hokage." Shikamaru concluded but quickly held his hands up as multiple angered gazes turned onto him. "Wait let me clarify!"

Sighing as he rubbed his temple, "Troublesome, I believe everyone knows how Naruto is treated by the majority of the civilians and a portion of the shinobi forces as well? That's exactly the reason why he would never achieve his dream, to be Hokage means more than just being some sort of figurehead."

"I understand where the Nara boy is coming from now... Uzumaki would have needed the complete and utter trust and loyalty of his village behind him if he were to become Hokage. If he can't even trust his own village to watch his back then how would he function as a proper Kage?" Danzo explained as he gestured out the window to the village beyond.

"I... I never thought about it like that..." Tsunade said with wide eyes before she hardened her gaze and slammed her fist onto the surface of her desk. "So the reason he left is because of the idiotic actions of the villagers..."

"Possibly, we still can't rule out the option that he might have been kidnapped whilst unconscious. The boy from what I remember has always been trusting and naïve. He could have been swayed by whatever lies his captors may have told him, but that is not important at the moment." Danzo slammed his cane onto the wooden ground to silence the rising chatter. "The main issue at the moment is that we don't even have a clue to his location, for all we know, Akatsuki could have gotten to him already."

"Even if they have captured him, they would not be able to seal him yet. The information obtained through my spy network states that the Kyuubi has to be sealed last, the beast holds too much power and would unbalance their sealing structure. Akatsuki would not risk revealing their main base by holding a shinobi captive for such a long duration, especially a Jinchuuriki at that." Jiraiya spoke up from his position.

"...all we can do at the moment is to carry on with our lives. And pray that Jiraiya's information network manages to find some trace of Naruto, I'll also be deploying tracking units to patrol around the borders of Hi no Kuni just in case." Tsunade sighed as she watched the gloomy expressions on her shinobi's faces.

"Excuse me Hokage-sama, but I don't think that is the only thing you've called us here for... now why don't you introduce us to the two fine young gentlemen standing by Danzo's side?" Kakashi eye-smiled as he tilted his head in the direction of the two silent teenagers, getting a shift in posture from them.

Danzo gestured for the two male teens at his side to step forward, "Perhaps you should allow me to do the introductions Tsunade-hime?"

He received a nod for him to continue.

"For those of you here who are not acquainted with my person, I am Shimura Danzo. I serve as an advisor to the Hokage and used to serve as a shinobi alongside my rival Sarutobi Hiruzen, whom you all would know as the Sandaime Hokage. What even less people know is that I have a programme in the running that picks up promising and talented strays and orphans off the street, giving them the chance to serve as shinobi. These two here are part of said programme, except they excelled further and faster than any other trainees I've had. Thus I had taken it upon myself to train both of them myself personally... both of you introduce yourself."

The grey-haired boy stepped forward first.

"My name is Shin, I do not know my family name. I will be turning fourteen this year. I have been trained in all facets of the shinobi arts but I excel in kenjutsu (sword techniques) and shurikenjutsu (shuriken techniques). My dreams for the future is to enter Konohagakure's Ansatsu Senjutsu Tokushu Butai (Special Assassination and Tactical Squad) and serve our village to the best of my abilities."

Next up was the pale-skinned, black-haired boy.

"My name is Sai, likewise my family name is unknown. I will be turning thirteen this year. I have been trained in all facets of the shinobi arts but I excel in my particular brand of ninjutsu revolving around bringing my paintings to life. At this moment it is still unknown if my particular ability is a Kekkei Genkai, Danzo-sama is still investigating that matter. My dreams for the future is similar to my partner's and that is to enter the ANBU division and serve Konoha to the best of my abilities."

The Jounins nodded in understanding as they were old enough to be aware of Danzo's not so secretive Root programme. The rookies on the other hand were a little thrown off by how robotic the two apprentices were, also they were unaware of the Root programme which was immediately voiced by Shikamaru.

"No offense Danzo-san, but if you ran a programme that trained orphans and strays... why was Naruto not inducted into your programme? Was it because of the Kyuubi being sealed into him?"

"Him being a Jinchuuriki had nothing to do with it, as a matter of fact, it was all the more reason I wanted him in my programme. Let's just say I am not exactly... lenient and my training schedules would be considered torture to some people, namely the Sandaime Hokage among them."

"Leave Sarutobi-sensei out of this, he had all rights to deny your request for Naruto to be given to you for training. You would just brainwash him into your mindless puppet just like-"

"Just like these two here? I am fully aware of what being a Jinchuuriki entails, that the hosts tap into their Bijū's (Tailed Beast) chakra when they are in a heightened emotional state. I would have let the boy keep his emotions but trained him in the art of control... to control his emotions instead of letting them control him. Hiruzen coddled the boy too much, yet at the same time he also ignored him to the same extent." Danzo cleared his throat as he looked at the blonde Hokage with a serious one-eyed gaze. "Face it Tsunade, Hiruzen failed the boy and he also failed Konoha. His weakness when it came to dealing with Orochimaru came back full circle, look where it landed him. Would you want the same to happen to the Uzumaki boy?"

Tsunade glared at the crippled advisor but could not refute his words, she could only grit her teeth and sigh in defeat as she looked back at the gathered shinobi before her. The blonde village leader could not help but notice how well they had taken the news of Naruto's status as a Jinchuuriki as well as his undetermined defection from the village, she steeled her gaze and started writing on a piece of paper.

"From this moment on, Uchiha Sasuke will be listed as a B-rank missing-nin. Capture alive if possible, death only if capture is impossible. Wanted for the crime of willingly defecting to a known S-rank missing-nin of Konoha as well as harming his fellow leaf shinobi. Uzumaki Naruto will be listed as an A-rank missing-nin. Capture alive at all costs. Death will not be tolerated. Wanted for questioning."

"Why are you listing Sasuke-kun as a missing-nin? He was being controlled by the cursed seal that Orochimaru planted on him!" Sakura shouted with tears in her eyes.

"Are you questioning your Hokage's orders Genin?" Tsunade glared at the pink-haired girl until she bowed her head and backed down.

"By morning tomorrow, the majority of Konoha's shinobi will be notified of the additions to our bingo book. As two of your students are absent without leave, the holes in your squad will be filled by these two here. Is that understood Kakashi?"

"I understand Tsunade-sama."

"Let me make this clear Jounin Hatake Kakashi... I am extremely disappointed in the reports I've seen for Team Seven. This is your only chance at redemption, if I find that you have been slacking in your duties again..." Tsunade growled as she slammed a clenched fist onto the table, turning it into dust. "Do I make myself clear?"

"Crystal Hokage-sama..." Kakashi gulped as he mentally bid goodbye to his relaxing time.

"Good... remember that none of you are allowed to mention anything that you have heard about in here. Not to your family, not to your friends, not to anyone! That is a direct order!"

"Hai Hokage-sama!" Everyone echoed.

"You are all dismissed..." She sighed and slumped back into her seat.

Danzo nodded to his apprentices, signalling them to follow their new squad. Slowly the shinobi filtered out from the office, leaving only the two loyal Sannin and one crippled old advisor within the room.

"As much as I hate to admit it, Danzo here really does make a good point. As idealistic as Sarutobi-sensei's 'Will of Fire' is, the fact that we are a shinobi village still stands. The reason we are in this deep a mess is because sensei did not put his foot down when the time called for it, allowing the situation to degrade as far as it did... still a portion of the blame rests with me as well..." Jiraiya sighed as he turned to look out the window. "As the boy's godfather, the duty to look after him fell to me after his parents' death... yet I left him to fend for himself."

"A mistake is only truly a mistake when one does not learn from it, I trust that both of you have learnt from this... if you will excuse me, I have other matters to attend to." Danzo said with a tilt of his head before making his way out of the room.

"...I'll see you around Tsunade-hime. I have to inform my spy network of the recent developments... as well as see if I can track down Naruto through my contacts." Jiraiya gave his teammate one last glance before leaping out the open window.

"Sometimes... I really hate my job..." Tsunade muttered as she buried her face in her hands.

* * *

_Unknown Location_

Naruto sighed as he once again found himself standing in the maze of sewage tunnels that was known as his mindscape, complete with rusty pipes and dirty sewage water that flowed around his ankles. Following the glowing red pipes that represented the Kyuubi's chakra flow through his body, he soon entered the large cavernous area that held the cage containing his tenant. As always the dark grey jail bars held together by a flimsy-looking piece of seal stood between him and the giant demonic fox made of chakra.

"Can someone explain why my mind is a sewer again?"

**"Silly meatbag, it just means you have a filthy mind!" **Kyuubi rumbled as she opened a single crimson eye to look at her jailor.

"I resent that! I am nothing like Ero-Sennin!"

**"Of course, and I'm a giant talking chakra construct of mass destruction..."**

"...but you are a giant talking chakra construct of mass destruction."

**"Wrong! I am THE giant talking chakra construct of mass destruction!"**

"..."

**"..."**

"So... I got my assed kicked by the two Akatsuki shinobi huh?"

**"No shit meatbag."**

Naruto sighed as he conjured up a chair to sit on, placing his elbows on his knees and his face in his palms. A few seconds of silence was followed by another sigh as the young blond looked up at his tenant with a resigned look on his face.

"So if I took up that offer you mentioned to me during the one month break before the Chunnin Examinations final round... I would really get stronger? Strong enough to face off against the paired up S-rank missing-nin system that Akatsuki employs?"

**"Yes and no. While it would definitely give you a major boost in power, power without control is worse than not having that power at all. Which is why I recommend you continue your training under that old sword-wielding meatbag, he looks like someone who can and will instil discipline into you." **Kyuubi replied in a firm-tone, showing just how serious she was on the matter.

"I understand... but I don't believe that just learning kenjutsu will be enough. I appreciate your honesty on the subject of your offer and after careful months of deliberation in addition to my fight against Akatsuki yesterday... I've decided to take you up on that offer."

**"You're serious? You trust me to hold up my end of the bargain?"** Kyuubi seemed genuinely shocked at his response.

"You've explained to me about the night of my birth, how you were manipulated by a masked man wielding an advanced form of the Sharingan. Despite your insults and belittling of my race, you have never given me a reason to distrust you. If I allowed myself to be governed by the tales and rumours about you, I would be no better than the idiotic villagers from Konoha."

**"...you're a strange meatbag. So when do you want it to happen?"**

"I have an extra condition though..."

**"An extra condition?"**

"Oh it's nothing big really just... before it happens, you have to tell me your name. Your real name." Naruto said with a warm smile.

**"My name? Why would you bother with something as trivial as that?"** Kyuubi asked in confusion.

"Names are important to everyone. Konohamaru for example wanted his name to be seen as it was, not hidden within the shadows of his famous grandfather. For me... my name is the only thing I have that was given to me by my parents. I may not have known them and they may not have been around but I will always cherish the one thing they left behind for me... that is my name." He whispered softly as looked into his tenant's crimson orbs, seeing something familiar within them. "So I assumed that for you too, your name will also have a certain significance behind it..."

Kyuubi could only stare at her Jinchuuriki in front of her in astounded silence, she had not expected such a deep response from her usually dense container. For a moment she could see the shadowed outline of a cloaked man with pale-purple ringed eyes standing over him, the image vanished as quickly as it appeared.

**"...fair enough. If you impress me enough through the ritual, I will grace you with my name."**

"And how would I impress you?"

**"The ritual involves us exchanging chakra as well as linking our souls together for that brief moment, during the ritual we will be able to view each others memories. I can not tell you the way to impress me as I am not sure myself, only during the ritual would I know what to look for."**

"I see... so did Mifune-sensei and Shibuki manage to save Fū from those two assholes?" Naruto asked suddenly.

**"I don't know meatbag, I can't exactly see anything outside this seal..."**

"Oh right... that was a pretty dumb question I guess..."

**"Don't worry, you're a pretty dumb person."**

"Ouch."

* * *

_Takigakure no Sato (Village Hidden in the Waterfall)_

_11 00_

Naruto groaned as he regained consciousness, a hand automatically pressing against his head due to his askew vision. A few seconds later he recovered enough for the room to stop spinning around him, a quick glance around told the blond that he was currently in a bedroom. Besides the single person bed he was laying on, the room was rather spartan in nature with few other furnishings.

His cerulean-blue eyes soon flew open in shock when he remembered the events prior to his descent into unconsciousness, he dragged himself out of bed despite the way his body groaned in protest. Moving over to the door, he was about to grab the handle when the door opened by itself revealing the imposing figure of his sensei.

"Going somewhere Naruto-totei?" He asked with a creepy smile.

"N-no Mifune-sensei... I was just going to look for Fū. Is she alright?" Naruto asked in return, his voice full of worry.

"No. No she isn't. Akatsuki managed to escape with her." Mifune replied, his tone flat and straight to the point.

"Shit... damn it!" Naruto cursed as he punched the wall beside him, cracking the cement slightly. "It's my fault... I was too weak. I couldn't save Sasuke... now Fū was taken as well because I wasn't strong enough..."

"So what are you going to do about it? Are you going to stand there and mope around? Are you going to run back to Konoha crying because of how much of a failure you are? If you even entertain one of those thoughts, I suggest you pack up and leave. I will not have an apprentice that whines and expects pity just because he failed!" Mifune growled in a stern, no nonsense voice.

"..."

"So what is it going to be? Are you going to run away like a coward? Are you going to whine like some pathetic civilian child?"

"No... I'll get stronger."

"You say that but where is your resolve. Anyone can say they want to get stronger... I want you to prove to me that you have the resolve to back up your words."

Naruto clenched his fists with is eyes closed and facing the ground, suddenly he dropped to his knees and fell prostrate before the elderly samurai. His next words rang loud and clear throughout the room, there was no hesitation behind his words only confidence and passion.

"Mifune-sensei, I pledge on my own honour to dedicate myself fully in my training to be a samurai. No matter how tough the training, no matter how hard you push me, I promise to endure everything without a single complaint. I will not stop until I have perfected every single exercise you set before me, I will not rest until I have become strong enough to protect all of my precious people!"

Mifune looked upon his apprentice with a wide smile, "Rise Naruto, I have seen your resolve. Tomorrow we shall begin your training here, Shibuki will be your first teacher. He has agreed to teach you their Takigakure-Ryū: Mizukiri no Yaiba (Hidden Waterfall Style: Water-cutting Blade), I expect you to offer him the proper thanks for imparting their village's secret technique to you."

"Hai Mifune-sensei." Naruto replied as he rose.

* * *

_Undisclosed Location, hidden Akatsuki base_

_11 00_

_Thump._

The unconscious form of the Nanabi Jinchuuriki was thrown onto the ground in front of a giant grotesque statue, the statue having its palm facing skywards and fingers fully extended upwards. Upon two of the fingers stood the forms of Deidara and Sasori, the rest of the figures were just a holographic shadowed outline of their form.

"We have captured the Nanabi's Jinchuuriki as you have ordered leader-sama." Sasori reported in his deep voice.

"Excellent. Were there any complications?" The ripple-patterned gaze of the unknown Akatsuki leader fell upon the infamous puppet-using missing-nin of Suna.

"To a certain extent... the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki and his mentor the samurai general of Tetsu no Kuni (Land of Iron) were also at Takigakure no Sato. The Kyuubi Jinchuuriki was together with the Nanabi's container when we attacked, so we had decided to capture both of them together. Unfortunately our opponents were more capable then we had expected and our fight managed to attract the attention of the shinobi within the village, including their leader and Mifune. We had to make our escape with just the Nanabi, my apologies leader-sama."

"Good thing you did... have you forgotten my orders that you were only to go after the target assigned to you? We are still short on funds and the only reason I decided to capture the Nanabi Jinchuuriki was because of her status as a village pariah, that way nobody would be alarmed of our movements. Now that we have witnesses, our actions will be that much harder to cover..." The leader paused as he gazed across the team of S-ranked missing-nin. "No matter, we will continue with our plans regardless of the circumstances... nobody can stop the wrath of a god after all. Now we will commence the sealing of the Nanabi immediately..."

"Fūinjutsu: Genryū Kyūfūjin (Sealing Technique: Phantom Dragons Nine Consuming Seals)."

* * *

_"Neko-onee-chan!"_

_She turned towards the direction from which the voice had come from, instantly spotting the head full of spiky sunshine-blond hair and bright cerulean-blue eyes. The boy in front of her looked no older than six years of age, his attire consisted of a pair of burnt orange shorts and a simple black tee with a red Konohagakure symbol imprinted on the front._

_"Konnichiwa Naru-chan, how was the academy today?" She asked, a smile appearing on her face at the cute pout the blond was giving her._

_"Stop calling me Naru-chan, my name is Naruto! And it was boring as usual!"_

_"You should pay attention in class, you do have to pass the Genin examinations if you want to become a shinobi you know?" She said before ruffling his spiky locks. "And you'll always be Naru-chan to me."_

_"Humph... even if I wanted to learn those stupid teachers just ignore me or kick me out of the lessons... they're just like the villagers." Naruto whispered as he kicked at the ground._

_Her eyes narrowed at the information, she had thought that being Chunnin would mean that they knew the difference between a kunai and the scroll that contained it. Apparently she was wrong, looks like a trip to inform the Hokage was in order. And if he could not do anything about it... she might have to pay those teachers a personal visit and physically show them the difference between a kunai and its scroll._

_"Don't worry Naru-chan, I can help you with the basics when I have some free time. Now how about we go get some ramen?" She smiled cheerfully at the blond child, pushing her dark thoughts into the back of her mind._

_"Yeah! You're the best Nee-chan!"_

Brown eyes snapped open in shock as a gasp escaped a pair of red lips, she attempted to pull herself up into a sitting position and was rewarded with a splitting headache for her actions. Forcing her body to cooperate, she opened a bottle of pills on her bedside table and downed two in an instant. A few minutes later she could already feel the painkillers at work, numbing both her headache as well as her aching body.

The long purple hair that framed her haggard yet still beautiful face, along with the fact that she still had on her ANBU armour signified the person as Uzuki Yūgao. ANBU captain and one of the strongest kunoichi in Konohagakure no Sato, perhaps the strongest if one did not count the current Hokage Senju Tsunade. However the death of her long-time lover Gekko Hayate had a large impact on her mental psyche, driving her into taking high-risk missions one after the other and yet somehow still completing each one with perfect results.

Yūgao cradled her head as she walked out of the bedroom of her rented apartment, carefully manoeuvring her way through the maze of sake bottles littering the floor. Setting the kettle on the stove, she plopped herself down on one of the wooden chairs in her kitchen.

'That memory... I knew Naruto as a child?' The purple-haired woman mentally asked herself in confusion.

A few minutes of rooting through her memories, she succeeded in locating a particular memory.

* * *

_"Yūgao I know you care for him but if you want to enter ANBU then you have to start training more, not to mention that being in ANBU will take up a lot of your time." Hayate said with a stern expression, even dropping the mask of his fake illness._

_"I know Hayate-kun... but he doesn't have anyone in the village to look out for him. I can't just abandon him!" Yūgao protested with a conflicted expression._

_"That's not true, he has Sandaime-sama as well as the owners of the ramen stand. Plus isn't it your dream to join Konoha's ANBU division?" He asked._

_"It is... I-I guess that he would be alright without me. I mean he would understand that I want to fulfil my dreams as well right?" She said, though her own voice sounded unconfident._

_"Exactly! Now how about a kenjutsu spar to take your mind off everything?"_

* * *

'I abandoned him... but my dream depicted us as close as actual siblings. If we were that close, how could I abandon him?' Yūgao questioned herself.

Before her thoughts could proceed any further, several sharp knocks at her front door drew her attention. Standing up from her seat, she stumbled over to the door and pulled it open slightly and was greeted with the grinning visage of one Mitarashi Anko. Groaning softly, she unlatched the door and invited her friend in.

"Damn girl, you look like shit!" Anko stated bluntly.

"Thanks, at least now I know I look how I feel." She responded just as blunt.

Her fellow purple-haired friend deposited herself on the sofa with a sigh, pulling out a stick of dango from somewhere of her form. Hearing the kettle whistle, she poured herself a cup of coffee and downed it instantly and relished in the burning sensation of the hot drink washing down her gullet.

"So are you here for another one of your 'cheer Yu-chan up' plans?" Yūgao asked sarcastically.

Anko frowned slightly before shrugging, "Nope, I have plenty of time for that later on in the evening! I'm actually here to inform you of the decision that Hokage-sama just made regarding the Uchiha and Uzumaki brats."

"Uzumaki? You mean Naruto? I thought he went to retrieve the Uchiha?" She asked in confusion.

"Wow you really have been running yourself into the ground if you don't even know the recent news! Apparently the Uzumaki had failed to bring back the Uchiha but that's not all, the brat himself disappeared from the scene of the battle and only left his Hitai-ate behind."

"Naruto left the village?"

"Well his Hitai-ate didn't have a scratch across it so nobody can be sure. He could have been abducted whilst he was unconscious or the Uchiha could have taken him to the snake bastard." Anko hissed the last two words.

"I see..."

"And since when were you on a first name basis with our resident Jinchuuriki anyway?" Anko narrowed her eyes curiously.

"I just had some sort of memory flashback... I had a past with Naruto even though I seem to have forgotten about it." Yūgao replied hesitantly, especially since her friend seemed to have gained a mischievous glint in her eyes.

"Oh do tell! I love juicy gossip!"

"It's not much as I've told you I can't remember much myself... I seemed to be some kind of elder sister figure to him when he was about six years old... but I stopped visiting him when I started training for ANBU and after that... I guess I forgot about him." She said with a guilty tone.

"Well Yu-chan, I can't say you exactly won the best sister of the year award for that. I can sympathise with the Kyuubi gaki since I know what it's like to be hated for something beyond your control and not having anyone around to support you..." Here she paused and pressed a hand against her cursed seal. "However it seems that nothing can be done about it now since he is MIA, though you can ask the Hokage to join in on the search missions."

"I'll keep that in mind..." Yūgao fell silent as she looked into the empty cup she held.

_'Who exactly are you Uzumaki Naruto?'_

* * *

**Well finally I managed to wrap this chapter up, it was extraordinarily hard due to the amount of dialogue in this chapter. This chapter served more as a means to advance the plot, showing the changes within the individual characters and their interactions. **

**What is the deal between Kyuubi and Naruto? Well you have to keep reading to find out! Expect a slight time-skip the next chapter and by slight I mean A WHOLE SEVEN YEARS! Just kidding, I won't pull a Fairy Tail on my lovely fans.**

**So now the rookies and team Gai are aware of Naruto's status as the Jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi no Yoko. How will that affect their growth? Shin and Sai have been introduced into the scheme of things, what will their presence serve? Naruto has gotten serious, what will this entail? Find out next time on...**

**NARUTO: PATH OF THE SAMURAI!**

**xNKx**


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